™  . 

The  Caliornia  Institute 


AGASSIZ  AT   THE  AGE  OF  "NINETEEN 


LOUIS  AGA 


HIS  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE 


jo  3ji 

n 


3H1 


EDITED  BY 

ELIZABETH  GARY  AGASSIZ 


IN  TWO  VOLUMES 
VOL.  I. 


BOSTON 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 

New  York:   11  East  Seventeenth  Street 


1886 


Copyright,  1885, 
Bl  ELIZABETH  GARY  AGASSIZ. 

All  rights  reserved* 


FOURTH    EDITION. 


The  Riverside  Press,  Cambridge: 
Electrotyped  and  Printed  by  H.  0-  Houghton  &  Co. 


.    QH 
3\ 
AZ 
AZ 

PREFACE. 


I  AM  aware  that  this  book  has  neither  the 
fullness  of  personal  narrative,  nor  the  closeness 
of  scientific  analysis,  which  its  too  comprehen- 
sive title  might  lead  the  reader  to  expect.  A 
word  of  explanation  is  therefore  needed.  I 
thought  little  at  first  of  the  general  public, 
when  I  began  to  weave  together  in  narrative 
form  the  facts,  letters,  and  journals  contained 
in  these  volumes.  My  chief  object  was  to  pre- 
vent the  dispersion  and  final  loss  of  scattered 
papers  which  had  an  unquestionable  family 
value.  But,  as  my  work  grew  upon  my 
hands,  I  began  to  feel  that  the  story  of  an  in- 
tellectual life,  which  was  marked  by  such  rare 
coherence  and  unity  of  aim,  might  have  a 
wider  interest  and  usefulness  ;  might,  perhaps, 


M.  \ 


iv  PREFACE. 

serve  as  a  stimulus  and  an  encouragement 
to  others.  For  this  reason,  and  also  because 
I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  the  European 
portion  of  the  life  of  Louis  Agassiz  is  little 
known  in  his  adopted  country,  while  its  Amer- 
ican period  must  be  unfamiliar  to  many  in  his 
native  land,  I  have  determined  to  publish  the 
material  here  collected. 

The  book  labors  under  the  disadvantage  of 
being  in  great  part  a  translation.  The  cor- 
respondence for  the  first  volume  was  almost 
wholly  in  French  and  German,  so  that  the 
choice  lay  between  a  patch-work  of  several 
languages  or  the  unity  of  one,  burdened  as  it 
must  be  with  the  change  of  version.  I  have 
accepted  what  seemed  to  me  the  least  of  these 
difficulties. 

Besides  the  assistance  of  my  immediate  fami- 
ly, including  the  revision  of  the  text  by  my  son 
Alexander  Agassiz,  I  have  been  indebted  to  my 
friends  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Hagen  and  to  the  late 
Professor  Guyot  for  advice  on  special  points. 


PREFACE.  V 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  list  of  illustrations, 
I  have  also  to  thank  Mrs.  John  W.  Elliot  for 
her  valuable  aid  in  that  part  of  the  work. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  water  I  have  had 
most  faithful  and  efficient  collaborators.  Mr. 
Auguste  Agassiz,  who  survived  his  brother 
Louis  several  years,  and  took  the  greatest  in- 
terest in  preserving  whatever  concerned  his 
scientific  career,  confided  to  my  hands  many 
papers  and  documents  belonging  to  his  broth- 
er's earlier  life.  After  the  death  of  my 
brother-in-law,  his  cousin  Mr.  Auguste  Mayor, 
of  Neuchatel,  continued  the  same  affectionate 
service.  Without  their  aid  I  could  not  have 
completed  the  narrative  as  it  now  stands. 

The  friend  last  named  also  selected  from 
the  glacier  of  the  Aar,  at  the  request  of  Alex- 
ander Agassiz,  the  boulder  which  now  marks 
his  father's  grave.  With  unwearied  patience 
Mr.  Mayor  passed  hours  of  toilsome  search 
among  the  blocks  of  the  moraine  near  the 
site  of  the  old  "  HStel  des  Neuchatelois,"  and 


vi  PREFACE. 

chose  at  last  a  stone  so  monumental  in  form 
that  not  a  touch  of  the  hammer  was  needed 
to  fit  it  for  its  purpose.  In  conclusion  I  allow 
myself  the  pleasure  of  recording  here  my  grat- 
itude to  him  and  to  all  who  have  aided  me 
in  my  work. 

ELIZABETH  C.  AGASSIZ. 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS.,  June  11, 1885. 


CONTENTS  OF  VOL.  I. 


CHAPTER  I. 
1807-1827:  TO  ^T.  20. 

Birthplace.  —  Influence  of  his  Mother.  —  Early  Love 
of  Natural  History.  —  Boyish  Occupations.  —  Do- 
mestic Education.  —  First  School.  —  Vacations.  — 
Commercial  Life  renounced.  —  College  of  Lausanne. 

—  Choice  of  Profession.  —  Medical  School  of  Zurich. 

—  Life  and  Studies  there.  —  University  of  Heidel- 
berg. —  Studies  interrupted  by  Illness.  —  Return  to 
Switzerland.  —  Occupations  during  Convalescence    .         1 

CHAPTER    II. 
1827-1828:  JST.  20-21. 

Arrival  in  Munich.  —  Lectures.  —  Relations  with  the 
Professors.  —  Schelling,  Martius,  Oken,  Dollinger. 

—  Relations   with  Fellow  -  Students.  —  The    Little 
Academy.  —  Plans   for   Traveling.  —  Advice   from 
his  Parents.  —  Vacation  Journey.  —  Tri-Centennial 
Diirer  Festival  at  Nuremberg    .....      46 

CHAPTER  III. 
1828-1829:  JET.  21-22. 

First  Important  Work  in  Natural  History.  —  Spix's 
Brazilian  Fishes.  —  Second  Vacation  Trip.  —  Sketch 


viii  CONTENTS  OF   VOL.  I. 

of  Work  during  University  Year.  —  Extracts  from 
the  Journal  of  Mr.  Dinkel.  —  Home  Letters.  —  Hope 
of  joining  Huniboldt's  Asiatic  Expedition.  —  Diploma 
of  Philosophy.  —  Completion  of  First  Part  of  the 
Spix  Fishes.  —  Letter  concerning  it  from  Cuvier  .  74 

CHAPTER  IV. 

1829-1830:  JET.  22-23. 

Scientific  Meeting  at  Heidelberg.  —  Visit  at  Home.  — 
Illness  and  Death  of  his  Grandfather.  —  Return  to 
Munich.  —  Plans  for  Future  Scientific  Publications. 

—  Takes  his  Degree  of  Medicine.  —  Visit  to  Vienna. 

—  Return  to  Munich.  —  Home  Letters.  —  Last  Days 
at   Munich.  —  Autobiographical   Review   of   School 

and  University  Life 117 

CHAPTER  V. 
1830-1832  :  ,ET.  23-25. 

Year  at  Home.  —  Leaves  Home  for  Paris.  —  Delays  on 
the  Road.  —  Cholera.  —  Arrival  in  Paris.  —  First 
Visit  to  Cuvier.  —  Cuvier's  Kindness.  —  His  Death. 

—  Poverty   in   Paris.  —  Home    Letters    concerning 
Embarrassments   and   about   his   Work.  —  Singular 
Dream      .....••••     158 

CHAPTER  VI. 
1832  :  ^T.  25. 

Unexpected  Relief  from  Difficulties.  —  Correspondence 
with  Humboldt.  —  Excursion  to  the  Coast  of  Nor- 
mandy. —  First  Sight  of  the  Sea.  —  Correspondence 
concerning  Professorship  at  Neuchatel.  —  Birthday 
Fete.  —  Invitation  to  Chair  of  Natural  History  at 
Neuchfttel.  —  Acceptance.  —  Letter  to  Humboldt  .  184 


CONTENTS  OF   VOL.   L  ix 

CHAPTER  VII. 
1832-1834:  ^T.  25-27. 

Enters  upon  his  Professorship  at  Neuchatel.  —  First 
Lecture.  —  Success  as  a  Teacher.  —  Love  of  Teach- 
ing. —  Influence  upon  the  Scientific  Life  of  Neucha- 
tel.  —  Proposal  from  University  of  Heidelberg.  — 
Proposal  declined.  —  Threatened  Blindness.  —  Cor- 
respondence with  Humboldt.  —  Marriage.  —  Invita- 
tion from  Charpentier.  —  Invitation  to  visit  England. 

—  Wollaston  Prize.  —  First   Number  of  "  Poissons 
Fossiles."  —  Review  of  the  Work     ....     206 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
1834-1837:  ^T.  27  -3<X 

First  Visit  to  England.  —  Reception  by  Scientific  Men. 

—  Work  on  Fossil  Fishes  there.  —  Liberality  of  Eng- 
lish Naturalists.  —  First  Relations  with  American 
Science.  —  Farther  Correspondence  with  Humboldt. 

—  Second  Visit  to  England.  —  Continuation  of  "  Fos- 
sil Fishes."  —  Other  Scientific  Publications.  —  Atten- 
tion drawn  to  Glacial  Phenomena.  —  Summer  ajj  Bex 
with  Charpentier.  —  Sale  of  Original  Drawings  for 
"Fossil  Fishes."  —  Meeting  of  Helvetic  Society. — 
Address  on  Ice-Perio^.  —  Letters  from  Humboldt 

and  Von  Buch .     248 

CHAPTER  IX. 
1837-1839:  ^T.  30-32. 

Invitation  to  Professorships  at  Geneva  and  Lausanne. 

—  Death  of   his  Father.  —  Establishment  of  Litho- 
graphic   Press    at    Neuchatel.  —  Researches    upon 
Structure  of  Mollusks.  —  Internal  Casts  of  Shells.  — 
Glacial  Explorations.  —  Views  of  Buckland.  —  Rela- 


X  CONTENTS   OF   VOL.  I. 

tions  with  Arnold  Guyot.  —  Their  Work  together  in 
the  Alps.  —  Letter  to  Sir  Philip  Egerton  concerning 
Glacial  Work.  —  Summer  of  1839.  —  Publication  of 
"  Etudes  sur  les  Glaciers  " 275 

CHAPTER  X. 
1840-1842:  ,ET.  33-35. 

Summer  Station  on  the  Glacier  of  the  Aar.  —  Hotel 
des  Neuchatelois.  —  Members  of  the  Party.  —  Work 
on  the  Glacier.  —  Ascent  of  the  Strahleck  and  the 
Siedelhorn.  —  Visit  to  England.  —  Search  for  Glacial 
Remains  in  Great  Britain.  —  Roads  of  Glen  Roy.  — 
Views  of  English  Naturalists  concerning  Agassiz's 
Glacial  Theory.  —  Letter  from  Humboldt.  — Winter 
Visit  to  Glacier.  —  Summer  of  1841  on  the  Glacier. 

—  Descent  into  the  Glacier.  —  Ascent  of  the  Jung- 
frau 298 

CHAPTER  XI. 
1842-1843:  ^T.   35-36. 

Zoological  Work  uninterrupted  by  Glacial  Researches. 

—  Various  Publications.  —  "Nomenclator  Zoblogi- 
cus."  —  «  Bibliographia   Zoologise   et   Geologise."  — 
Correspondence  with  English  Naturalists.  —  Corre- 
spondence with  Humboldt.  —  Glacial  Campaign  of 

1842.  —  Correspondence  with  Prince  de  Canino  con- 
cerning Journey  to  United  States. —  Fossil  Fishes 
from  the  Old  Red  Sandstone.  —  Glacial  Campaign  of 

1843.  —  Death  of  Leuthold,  the  Guide       .  .     333 

CHAPTER  XII. 
1843-1846:  .ET.  36-39. 

Completion  of  Fossil  Fishes.  —  Followed  by  Fossil 
Fishes  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone.  —  Review  of  the 
Later  Work.  —  Identification  of  Fishes  by  the  Skull. 


CONTENTS  OF  VOL.  I.  xi 

—  Renewed    Correspondence    with   Prince    Canino 
about  Journey  to  the  United  States. — Change  of 
Plan  owing  to  the  Interest  of  the  King  of  Prussia  in 
the  Expedition.  —  Correspondence  between  Profes- 
sor Sedgwick  and  Agassiz  on  Devolopment  Theory. 

—  Final  Scientific  Work  in  Neuchatel  and  Paris.  — 
Publication  of  "Systeme  Glaciaire."  —  Short  Stay  in 
England.  —  Farewell  Letter  from  Humboldt.  —  Sails 

for  United  States      .....  ,366 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTEATIONS. 

VOLUME  I. 


PAGE 

I.  PORTRAIT  OF  Louis  AGASSIZ  AT  THE  AGE  OF 
NINETEEN  ;  copied  by  Mrs.  John  W.  Elliot 
from  a  pastel  drawing  by  Cecile  Brauu  Frontispiece 

II.   THE  STONE  BASIN  AT  MOTIER  ;  drawn  by  Mrs. 

Elliot  from  a  photograph  .         .         .       Vignette 

III.  THE   BIRTHPLACE   OF  Louis  AGASSIZ  ;  from  a 

photograph 9 

IV.  HOTEL  DES  N"EUCH!TELOIS  ;  copied  by  Mrs.  El- 

liot from  an  oil  sketch  made  on  the  spot  by  J. 
Burkhardt 305 

V.   PORTRAIT  OF  JACOB  LEUTHOLD  ;  from  a  por- 
trait by  J.  Burkhardt 329 

VI.  SECOND  STATION  ON  THE  AAR  GLACIER  ;  cop- 
ied by  Mrs.  Elliot  from  a  sketch  in  oil  by  J. 
Burkhardt  .  353 


LOUIS  AGASSIZ: 

HIS  LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

1807-1827:  TO  2ET.   20. 

Birthplace.  —  Influence  of  his  Mother.  —  Early  Love  of  Nat- 
ural History.  —  Boyish  Occupations.  —  Domestic  Educa- 
tion. —  First  School.  —  Vacations.  —  Commercial  Life  re- 
nounced. —  College  of  Lausanne.  —  Choice  of  Profession. 

—  Medical  School  of  Zurich.  —  Life  and  Studies  there.  — 
University  of  Heidelberg.  —  Studies  interrupted  by  Illness. 

—  Return  to  Switzerland.  —  Occupations  during  Convales- 
cence. 

JEAN  Louis  RODOLPHB  AGASSIZ  was  born 
May  28, 1807,  at  the  village  of  Motier,  on  the 
Lake  of  Morat.  His  father,  Louis  Rodolphe 
Agassiz,  was  a  clergyman  ;  his  mother,  Rose 
Mayor,  was  the  daughter  of  a  physician  whose 
home  was  at  Cudrefin,  on  the  shore  of  the 
Lake  of  Neuchatel. 

The  parsonages  in  Switzerland  are  fre- 
quently pretty  and  picturesque.  That  of  Mo- 
tier,  looking  upon  the  lake  and  sheltered  by 
a  hill  which  commands  a  view  over  the  whole 

VOL.  I.  1 


2  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

chain  of  the  Bernese  Alps,  was  especially  so. 
It  possessed  a  vineyard  large  enough  to  add 
something  in  good  years  to  the  small  salary 
of  the  pastor ;  an  orchard  containing,  among 
other  trees,  an  apricot  famed  the  country 
around  for  the  unblemished  beauty  of  its 
abundant  fruit;  a  good  vegetable  garden,  and 
a  delicious  spring  of  water  flowing  always 
fresh  and  pure  into  a  great  stone  basin  behind 
the  house.  That  stone  basin  was  Agassiz's 
first  aquarium ;  there  he  had  his  first  collec- 
tion of  fishes.1 

It  does  not  appear  that  he  had  any  preco- 
cious predilection  for  study,  and  his  parents, 
who  for  the  first  ten  years  of  his  life  were 
his  only  teachers,  were  too  wise  to  stimulate 
his  mind  beyond  the  ordinary  attainments  of 
his  age.  Having  lost  her  first  four  children 
in  infancy,  his  mother  watched  with  trem- 
bling solicitude  over  his  early  years.  It  was 
perhaps  for  this  reason  that  she  was  drawn  so 
closely  to  her  boy,  and  understood  that  his 
love  of  nature,  and  especially  of  all  living 

1  After  his  death  a  touching  tribute  was  paid  to  his  mem- 
ory by  the  inhabitants  of  his  birthplace.  With  appropriate 
ceremonies,  a  marble  slab  was  placed  above  the  door  of  the 
parsonage  of  Metier,  with  this  inscription,  "  J.  Louis  Agas- 
siz,  celebre  naturaliste,  est  n£  dans  cette  maison,  le  28  Mai, 
1807." 


EARLY  LOVE   OF  NATURAL  HISTORY.      3 

things,  was  an  intellectual  tendency,  and  not 
simply  a  child's  disposition  to  find  friends 
and  playmates  in  the  animals  about  him.  In 
later  years  her  sympathy  gave  her  the  key  to 
the  work  of  his  manhood,  as  it  had  done  to 
the  sports  of  his  childhood.  She  remained 
his  most  intimate  friend  to  the  last  hour  of 
her  life,  and  he  survived  her  but  six  years. 

Louis's  love  of  natural  history  showed  itself 
almost  from  infancy.  When  a  very  little  fel- 
low he  had,  beside  his  collection  of  fishes,  all 
sorts  of  pets  :  birds,  field-mice,  hares,  rabbits, 
guinea-pigs,  etc.,  whose  families  he  reared  with 
the  greatest  care.  Guided  by  his  knowledge 
of  the  haunts  and  habits  of  fishes,  he  and  his 
brother  Auguste  became  the  most  adroit  of 
young  fishermen,  —  using  processes  all  their 
own  and  quite  independent  of  hook,  line,  or 
net.  Their  hunting  grounds  were  the  holes 
and  crevices  beneath  the  stones  or  in  the 
water-washed  walls  of  the  lake  shore.  No 
such  shelter  was  safe  from  their  curious  fin- 
gers, and  they  acquired  such  dexterity  that 
when  bathing  they  could  seize  the  fish  even  in 
the  open  water,  attracting  them  by  little  arts 
to  which  the  fish  submitted  as  to  a  kind  of 
fascination.  Such  amusements  are  no  doubt 
the  delight  of  many  a  lad  living  in  the  coun- 


4  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

try,  nor  would  they  be  worth  recording  ex- 
cept as  illustrating  the  unity  of  Agassiz's  in- 
tellectual development  from  beginning  to  end. 
His  pet  animals  suggested  questions,  to  answer 
which  was  the  task  of  his  life;  and  his  inti- 
mate study  of  the  fresh-water  fishes  of  Eu- 
rope, later  the  subject  of  one  of  his  important 
works,  began  with  his  first  collection  from  the 
Lake  of  Morat. 

As  a  boy  he  amused  himself  also  with  all 
kinds  of  handicrafts  on  a  small  scale.  The 
carpenter,  the  cobbler,  the  tailor,  were  then  as 
much  developed  in  him  as  the  naturalist.  In 
Swiss  villages  it  was  the  habit  in  those  days 
for  the  trades-people  to  go  from  house  to 
house  in  their  different  vocations.  The  shoe- 
maker came  two  or  three  times  a  year  with  all 
his  materials,  and  made  shoes  for  the  whole 
family  by  the  day  ;  the  tailor  came  to  fit  them 
for  garments  which  he  made  in  the  house ;  the 
cooper  arrived  before  the  vintage,  to  repair  old 
barrels  and  hogsheads  or  to  make  new  ones,  and 
to  replace  their  worn-out  hoops  ;  in  short,  to 
fit  up  the  cellar  for  the  coming  season.  Agas- 
siz  seems  to  have  profited  by  these  lessons  as 
much  as  by  those  he  learned  from  his  father ; 
and  when  a  very  little  fellow,  he  could  cut 
and  put  together  a  well-fitting  pair  of  shoes 


BOYISH  OCCUPATIONS.  5 

for  his  sisters'  dolls,  was  no  bad  tailor,  and 
could  make  a  miniature  barrel  that  was  per- 
fectly water-tight.  He  remembered  these 
trivial  facts  as  a  valuable  part  of  his  inci- 
dental education.  He  said  he  owed  much  of 
his  dexterity  in  manipulation,  to  the  training 
of  eye  and  hand  gained  in  these  childish 
plays. 

Though  fond  of  quiet,  in-door  occupation, 
he  was  an  active,  daring  boy.  One  winter 
day  when  about  seven  years  of  age,  he  was 
skating  with  his  little  brother  Auguste,  two 
years  younger  than  himself,  and  a  number  of 
other  boys,  near  the  shore  of  the  lake.  They 
were  talking  of  a  great  fair  held  that  day  at 
the  town  of  Morat,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
lake,  to  which  M.  Agassiz  had  gone  in  the 
morning,  not  crossing  upon  the  ice,  however, 
but  driving  around  the  shore.  The  temp- 
tation was  too  strong  for  Louis,  and  he  pro- 
posed to  Auguste  that  they  should  skate 
across,  join  their  father  at  the  fair,  and  come 
home  with  him  in  the  afternoon.  They  start- 
ed accordingly.  The  other  boys  remained  on 
their  skating  ground  till  twelve  o'clock,  the 
usual  dinner  hour,  when  they  returned  to  the 
viUage.  Mme.  Agassiz  was  watching  for  her 
boys,  thinking  them  rather  late,  and  on  in- 


6  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

quiring  for  them  among  the  troop  of  urchins 
coming  down  the  village  street  she  learned 
on  what  errand  they  had  gone.  Her  anxiety 
may  be  imagined.  The  lake  was  not  less 
than  two  miles  across,  and  she  was  by  no 
means  sure  that  the  ice  was  safe.  She  hur- 
ried to  an  upper  window  with  a  spy-glass  to 
see  if  she  could  descry  them  anywhere.  At 
the  moment  she  caught  sight  of  them,  already 
far  on  their  journey,  Louis  had  laid  himself 
down  across  a  fissure  in  the  ice,  thus  making 
a  bridge  for  his  little  brother,  who  was  creep- 
ing over  his  back.  Their  mother  directed  a 
workman,  an  excellent  skater,  to  follow  them 
as  swiftly  as  possible.  He  overtook  them 
just  as  they  had  gained  the  shore,  but  it  did 
not  occur  to  him  that  they  could  return  other- 
wise than  they  had  come,  and  he  skated  back 
with  them  across  the  lake.  Weary,  hungry, 
and  disappointed,  the  boys  reached  the  house 
without  having  seen  the  fair  or  enjoyed  the 
drive  home  with  their  father  in  the  afternoon. 
When  he  was  ten  years  old,  Agassiz  was 
sent  to  the  college  for  boys  at  Bienne,  thus 
exchanging  the  easy  rule  of  domestic  instruc- 
tion for  the  more  serious  studies  of  a  public 
school.  He  found  himself  on  a  level  with  his 
class,  however,  for  his  father  was  an  admirable 


SCHOOL  LIFE.  f 

teacher.  Indeed  it  would  seem  that  Agassiz's 
own  passion  for  teaching,  as  well  as  his  love 
of  young  people  and  his  sympathy  with  intel- 
lectual aspiration  everywhere,  was  an  inherit- 
ance. Wherever  his  father  was  settled  as 
pastor,  at  Motier,  at  Orbe,  and  later  at  Con- 
cise, his  influence  was  felt  in  the  schools  as 
much  as  in  the  pulpit.  A  piece  of  silver  re- 
mains, a  much  prized  heir-loom  in  the  family, 
given  to  him  by  the  municipality  of  Orbe  in 
acknowledgment  of  his  services  in  the  schools. 
The  rules  of  the  school  at  Bienne  were 
rather  strict,  but  the  life  led  by  the  boys  was 
hardy  and  invigorating,  and  they  played  as 
heartily  as  they  worked.  Remembering  his 
own  school  life,  Agassiz  often  asked  himself 
whether  it  was  difference  of  climate  or  of 
method,  which  makes  the  public  school  life  in 
the  United  States  so  much  more  trying  to  the 
health  of  children  than  the  one  under  which 
he  was  brought  up.  The  boys  and  girls  in 
our  public  schools  are  said  to  be  overworked 
with  a  session  of  five  hours,  and  an  additional 
hour  or  two  of  study  at  home.  At  the  Col- 
lege of  Bienne  there  were  nine  hours  of  study, 
and  the  boys  were  healthy  and  happy.  Per- 
haps the  secret  might  be  found  in  the  fre- 
quent interruption,  two  or  three  hours  of 


8  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

study  alternating  with  an  interval  for  play  or 
rest.  Agassiz  always  retained  a  pleasant  im- 
pression of  the  school  and  its  teachers.  Mr. 
Rickly,  the  director,  he  regarded  with  an  af- 
fectionate respect,  which  ripened  into  friend- 
ship in  maturer  years. 

The  vacations  were,  of  course,  hailed  with 
delight,  and  as  Motier  was  but  twenty  miles 
distant  from  Bienne,  Agassiz  and  his  younger 
brother  Auguste,  who  joined  him  at  school  a 
year  later,  were  in  the  habit  of  making  the 
journey  on  foot.  The  lives  of  these  brothers 
were  so  closely  interwoven  in  their  youth  that 
for  many  years  the  story  of  one  includes  the 
story  of  the  other.  They  had  everything  in 
common,  and  with  their  little  savings  they 
used  to  buy  books,  chosen  by  Louis,  the  foun- 
dation, as  it  proved,  of  his  future  library. 

Long  before  dawn  on  the  first  day  of  vaca- 
tion the  two  bright,  active  boys  would  be  on 
their  homeward  way,  as  happy  as  holiday 
could  make  them,  especially  if  they  were  re- 
turning for  the  summer  harvest  or  the  au- 
tumn vintage.  The  latter  was  then,  as  now, 
a  season  of  festivity.  In  these  more  modern 
days  something  of  its  primitive  picturesque- 
ness  may  have  been  lost ;  but  when  Agassiz 
was  a  boy,  all  the  ordinary  occupations  were 


VINTAGE   SEASON.  9 

given  up  for  this  important  annual  business, 
in  which  work  and  play  were  so  happily  com- 
bined. On  the  appointed  day  the  working 
people  might  be  seen  trooping  in  from  neigh- 
boring cantons,  where  there  were  no  vine- 
yards, to  offer  themselves  for  the  vintage. 
They  either  camped  out  at  night,  sleeping  in 
the  open  air,  or  found  shelter  in  the  stables 
and  outhouses.  During  the  grape  gathering 
the  floor  of  the  barn  and  shed  at  the  parson- 
age of  Motier  was  often  covered  in  the  even- 
ing with  tired  laborers,  both  men  and  women. 
Of  course,  when  the  weather  was  fine,  these 
were  festival  days  for  the  children.  A  bushel 
basket,  heaped  high  with  white  and  amber 
bunches,  stood  in  the  hall,  or  in  the  living 
room  of  the  family,  and  young  and  old  were 
free  to  help  themselves  as  they  came  and  went. 
Then  there  were  the  frolics  in  the  vineyard, 
the  sweet  cup  of  must  (unfermented  juice  of 
the  grape),  and  the  ball  on  the  last  evening 
at  the  close  of  the  merry-making. 

Sometimes  the  boys  passed  their  vacations 
at  Cudrefin,  with  their  grandfather  Mayor. 
He  was  a  kind  old  man,  much  respected  in 
his  profession,  and  greatly  beloved  for  his  be- 
nevolence. His  little  white  horse  was  well 
known  in  all  the  paths  and  by-roads  of  the 


10  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

country  around,  as  he  went  from  village  to 
village  among  the  sick.  The  grandmother 
was  frail  in  health,  but  a  great  favorite  among 
the  children,  for  whom  she  had  an  endless 
fund  of  stories,  songs,  and  hymns.  Aunt 
Lisette,  an  unmarried  daughter,  who  long 
lived  to  maintain  the  hospitality  of  the  old 
Cudrefin  house  and  to  be  beloved  as  the  kind- 
est of  maiden  aunts  by  two  or  three  genera- 
tions of  nephews  and  nieces,  was  the  domestic 
providence  of  these  family  gatherings,  where 
the  praises  of  her  excellent  dishes  were  annu- 
ally sung.  The  roof  was  elastic  ;  there  was 
no  question  about  numbers,  for  all  came  who 
could ;  the  more,  the  merrier,  with  no  diminu- 
tion of  good  cheer. 

The  Sunday  after  Easter  was  the  great  pop- 
ular fete.  Then  every  house  was  busy  color- 
ing Easter  eggs  and  making  fritters.  The 
young  girls  and  the  lads  of  the  village,  the 
former  in  their  prettiest  dresses  and  the  latter 
with  enormous  bouquets  of  artificial  flowers 
in  their  hats,  went  together  to  church  in  the 
morning.  In  the  afternoon  the  traditional 
match  between  two  runners,  chosen  from  the 
village  youths,  took  place.  They  were  dressed 
in  white,  and  adorned  with  bright  ribbons. 
With  music  before  them,  and  followed  by  all 


EASTER  FESTIVAL.  H 

the  young  people,  they  went  in  procession  to 
the  place  where  a  quantity  of  Easter  eggs  had 
been  distributed  upon  the  ground.  At  a  sig- 
nal the  runners  separated,  the  one  to  pick  up 
the  eggs  according  to  a  prescribed  course,  the 
other  to  run  to  the  next  village  and  back 
again.  The  victory  was  to  the  one  who  ac- 
complished his  task  first,  and  he  was  pro- 
claimed king  of  the  feast.  Hand  in  hand  the 
runners,  followed  as  before  by  all  their  com- 
panions, returned  to  join  in  the  dance  now 
to  take  place  before  the  house  of  Dr.  Mayor. 
After  a  time  the  festivities  were  interrupted 
by  a  little  address  in  patois  from  the  first 
musician,  who  concluded  by  announcing  from 
his  platform  a  special  dance  in  honor  of  the 
family  of  Dr.  Mayor.  In  this  dance  the  fam- 
ily with  some  of  their  friends  and  neighbors 
took  part,  —  the  young  ladies  dancing  with 
the  peasant  lads  and  the  young  gentlemen 
with  the  girls  of  the  village,  —  while  the  rest 
formed  a  circle  to  look  on. 

Thus,  between  study  and  recreation,  the  four 
years  which  Agassiz's  father  and  mother  in- 
tended he  should  pass  at  Bienne  drew  to  a 
close.  A  yellow,  time-worn  sheet  of  foolscap, 
on  which  during  the  last  year  of  his  school- 
life  he  wrote  his  desiderata  in  the  way  of 


12  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

books,  tells  something  of  his  progress  and 
his  aspirations  at  fourteen  years  of  age.  "  I 
wish,"  so  it  runs,  "  to  advance  in  the  sciences, 
and  for  that  I  need  d'Anville,  Ritter,  an  Ital- 
ian dictionary,  a  Strabo  in  Greek,  Mannert 
and  Thiersch  ;  and  also  the  works  of  Malte- 
Brun  and  Seyfert.  I  have  resolved,  as  far  as 
I  am  allowed  to  do  so,  to  become  a  man  of 
letters,  and  at  present  I  can  go  no  further : 
1st,  in  ancient  geography,  for  I  already  know 
all  my  note -books,  and  I  have  only  such 
books  as  Mr.  Rickly  can  lend  me ;  I  must 
have  d'Anville  or  Mannert ;  2d,  in  modern 
geography,  also,  I  have  only  such  books  as 
Mr.  Rickly  can  lend  me,  and  the  Osterwald 
geography,  which  does  not  accord  with  the 
new  divisions ;  I  must  have  Ritter  or  Malte- 
Brun  ;  3d,  for  Greek  I  need  a  new  gram- 
mar, and  I  shall  choose  Thiersch ;  4th,  I  have 
no  Italian  dictionary,  except  one  lent  me  by 
Mr.  Moltz ;  I  must  have  one ;  5th,  for  Latin 
I  need  a  larger  grammar  than  the  one  I 
have,  and  I  should  like  Seyfert ;  6th,  Mr. 
Rickly  tells  me  that  as  I  have  a  taste  for 
geography  he  will  give  me  a  lesson  in  Greek 
(gratis),  in  which  we  would  translate  Strabo, 
provided  I  can  find  one.  For  all  this  I  ought 
to  have  about  twelve  louis.  I  should  like 


SCHOLARLY  HABITS.  13 

to  stay  at  Bienne  till  the  month  of  July,  and 
afterward  serve  my  apprenticeship  in  com- 
merce at  Neuchatel  for  a  year  and  a  half. 
Then  I  should  like  to  pass  four  years  at  a 
university  in  Germany,  and  finally  finish  my 
studies  at  Paris,  where  I  would  stay  about 
five  years.  Then,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five, 
I  could  begin  to  write." 

Agassiz's  note-books,  preserved  by  his  par- 
ents, who  followed  the  education  of  their  chil- 
dren with  the  deepest  interest,  give  evidence 
of  his  faithful  work  both  at  school  and  college. 
They  form  a  great  pile  of  manuscript,  from 
the  paper  copy-books  of  the  school-boy  to  the 
carefully  collated  reports  of  the  college  stu- 
dent, begun  when  the  writer  was  ten  or  eleven 
years  of  age  and  continued  with  little  inter- 
ruption till  he  was  eighteen  or  nineteen.  The 
later  volumes  are  of  nearly  quarto  size  and 
very  thick,  some  of  them  containing  from  four 
to  six  hundred  closely  covered  pages ;  the 
handwriting  is  small,  no  doubt  for  economy 
of  space,  but  very  clear.  The  subjects  are 
physiological,  pathological,  and  anatomical, 
with  more  or  less  of  general  natural  history. 
This  series  of  books  is  kept  with  remarkable 
neatness.  Even  in  the  boy's  copy-books,  con- 
taining exercises  in  Greek,  Latin,  French  and 


14  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

German,  with  compositions  on  a  variety  of 
topics,  the  writing  is  even  and  distinct,  with 
scarcely  a  blot  or  an  erasure.  From  the  very 
beginning  there  is  a  careful  division  of  sub- 
jects under  clearly  marked  headings,  showing 
even  then  a  tendency  toward  an  orderly  classi- 
fication of  facts  and  thoughts. 

It  is  evident  from  the  boyish  sketch  which 
he  drew  of  his  future  plans  that  the  hope  of 
escaping  the  commercial  life  projected  for 
him,  and  of  dedicating  himself  to  letters  and 
learning,  was  already  dawning.  He  had  be- 
gun to  feel  the  charm  of  study,  and  his  sci- 
entific tastes,  though  still  pursued  rather  as 
the  pastimes  of  a  boy  than  as  the  investiga- 
tions of  a  student,  were  nevertheless  becom- 
ing more  and  more  absorbing.  He  was  fif- 
teen years  old  and  the  time  had  come  when, 
according  to  a  purpose  long  decided  upon,  he 
was  to  leave  school  and  enter  the  business 
house  of  his  uncle,  Francois  Mayor,  at  Neu- 
chatel.  He  begged  for  a  farther  delay,  to  be 
spent  in  two  additional  years  of  study  at  the 
College  of  Lausanne.  He  was  supported  in 
his  request  by  several  of  his  teachers,  and 
especially  by  Mr.  Kickly,  who  urged  his  par- 
ents to  encourage  the  remarkable  intelligence 
and  zeal  already  shown  by  their  son  in  his 


A    COMMERCIAL  LIFE  ABANDONED.     15 

studies.  They  were  not  difficult  to  persuade ; 
indeed,  only  want  of  means,  never  want  of 
will,  limited  the  educational  advantages  they 
gave  to  their  children. 

It  was  decided,  therefore,  that  he  should  go 
to  Lausanne.  Here  his  love  for  everything 
bearing  on  the  study  of  nature  was  confirmed. 
Professor  Chavannes,  Director  of  the  Can- 
tonal Museum,  in  whom  he  found  not  only 
an  interesting  teacher,  but  a  friend  who  sym- 
pathized with  his  favorite  tastes,  possessed 
the  only  collection  of  Natural  History  in  the 
Canton  de  Vaud.  To  this  Agassiz  now  had 
access.  His  uncle,  Dr.  Mathias  Mayor,  his 
mother's  brother  and  a  physician  of  note  in 
Lausanne,  whose  opinion  had  great  weight 
with  M.  and  Mme.  Agassiz,  was  also  attracted 
by  the  boy's  intelligent  interest  in  anatomy 
and  kindred  subjects.  He  advised  that  his 
nephew  should  be  allowed  to  study  medicine, 
and  at  the  close  of  Agassiz' s  college  course 
at  Lausanne  the  commercial  plan  was  finally 
abandoned,  and  he  was  permitted  to  choose 
the  medical  profession  as  the  one  most  akin  to 
his  inclination. 

Being  now  seventeen  years  of  age,  he  went 
to  the  medical  school  of  Zurich.  Here,  for 
the  first  time,  he  came  into  contact  with  men 


16  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

whose  instruction  derived  freshness  and  vigor 
from  their  original  researches.  He  was  espe- 
cially indebted  to  Professor  Schinz,  a  man  of 
learning  and  ability,  who  held  the  chair  of 
Natural  History  and  Physiology,  and  who 
showed  the  warmest  interest  in  his  pupil's 
progress.  He  gave  Agassiz  a  key  to  his  pri- 
vate library,  as  well  as  to  his  collection  of 
birds.  This  liberality  was  invaluable  to  one 
whose  poverty  made  books  an  unattainable 
luxury.  Many  an  hour  did  the  young  student 
pass  at  that  time  in  copying  books  which 
were  beyond  his  means,  though  some  of  them 
did  not  cost  more  than  a  dollar  a  volume. 
His  brother  Auguste,  still  his  constant  com- 
panion, shared  this  task,  a  pure  labor  of  love 
with  him,  for  the  books  were  more  necessary 
to  Louis's  studies  than  to  his  own. 

During  the  two  years  passed  by  Agassiz  in 
Zurich  he  saw  little  of  society  beyond  the 
walls  of  the  university.  His  brother  and  he 
had  a  pleasant  home  in  a  private  house,  where 
they  shared  the  family  life  of  their  host  and 
hostess.  In  company  with  them,  Agassiz 
made  his  first  excursion  of  any  importance 
into  the  Alps.  They  ascended  the  Eighi  and 
passed  the  night  there.  At  about  sunset  a 
fearful  thunder-storm  gathered  below  them, 


A    CHANCE  FRIEND.  17 

while  on  the  summit  of  the  mountain  the 
weather  remained  perfectly  clear  and  calm. 
Under  a  blue  sky  they  watched  the  light- 
ning, and  listened  to  the  thunder  in  the  dark 
clouds,  which  were  pouring  torrents  of  rain 
upon  the  plain  and  the  Lake  of  Lucerne. 
The  storm  lasted  long  after  night  had  closed 
in,  and  Agassiz  lingered  when  all  his  com- 
panions had  retired  to  rest,  till  at  last  the 
clouds  drifted  softly  away,  letting  down  the 
light  of  moon  and  stars  on  the  lake  and  land- 
scape. He  used  to  say  that  in  his  subsequent 
Alpine  excursions  he  had  rarely  witnessed  a 
scene  of  greater  beauty. 

Such  of  his  letters  from  Zurich  as  have 
been  preserved  have  only  a  home  interest.  In 
one  of  them,  however,  he  alludes  to  a  curious 
circumstance,  which  might  have  changed  the 
tenor  of  his  life.  He  and  his  brother  were 
returning  on  foot,  for  the  vacation,  from  Zu- 
rich to  their  home  which  was  now  in  Orbe, 
where  their  father  and  mother  had  been  set- 
tled since  1821.  Between  Neuchatel  and 
Orbe  they  were  overtaken  by  a  traveling  car- 
riage. A  gentleman  who  was  its  sole  occu- 
pant invited  them  to  get  in,  made  them  wel- 
come to  his  lunch,  talked  to  them  of  their 
student  life,  and  their  future  plans,  and  drove 

VOL.   I.  2 


18  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

them  to  the  parsonage,  where  he  introduced 
himself  to  their  parents.  Some  days  after- 
ward M.  Agassiz  received  a  letter  from  this 
chance  acquaintance,  who  proved  to  be  a  man 
in  affluent  circumstances,  of  good  social  posi- 
tion, living  at  the  time  in  Geneva.  He  wrote 
to  M.  Agassiz  that  he  had  been  singularly  at- 
tracted by  his  elder  son,  Louis,  and  that  he 
wished  to  adopt  him,  assuming  henceforth  all 
the  responsibility  of  his  education  and  his  es- 
tablishment in  life.  This  proposition  fell  like 
a  bomb-shell  into  the  quiet  parsonage.  M. 
Agassiz  was  poor,  and  every  advantage  for  his 
children  was  gained  with  painful  self-sacrifice 
on  the  part  of  both  parents.  How  then  re- 
fuse such  an  opportunity  for  one  among  them, 
and  that  one  so  gifted  ?  After  anxious  reflec- 
tion, however,  the  father,  with  the  full  con- 
currence of  his  son,  decided  to  decline  an  offer 
which,  brilliant  as  it  seemed,  involved  a  sepa- 
ration and  might  lead  to  a  false  position.  A 
correspondence  was  kept  up  for  years  between 
Louis  and  the  friend  he  had  so  suddenly  won, 
and  who  continued  to  interest  himself  in  his 
career.  Although  it  had  no  sequel,  this  inci- 
dent is  mentioned  as  showing  a  kind  of  per- 
sonal magnetism  which,  even  as  child  and  boy, 
Agassiz  unconsciously  exercised  over  others. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  HEIDELBERG.         19 

From  Zurich,  Agassiz  went  to  the  Univer- 
sity of  Heidelberg,  where  we  find  him  in  the 
spring  of  1826. 

TO   HIS   FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG,  April  24,  1826. 

.  .  .  Having  arrived  early  enough  to  see 
something  of  the  environs  before  the  open- 
ing of  the  term,  I  decided  to  devote  each  day 
to  a  ramble  in  one  direction  or  another,  in 
order  to  become  familiar  with  my  surround- 
ings. I  am  the  more  glad  to  have  done  this 
as  I  have  learned  that  after  the  lectures  begin 
there  will  be  no  further  chance  for  such  in- 
terruptions, and  we  shall  be  obliged  to  stick 
closely  to  our  work  at  home. 

Our  first  excursion  was  to  Neckarsteinach, 
two  and  a  half  leagues  from  here.  The  road 
follows  the  Neckar,  and  at  certain  places  rises 
boldly  above  the  river,  which  flows  between 
two  hills,  broken  by  rocks  of  the  color  of  red 
chalk,  which  often  jut  out  from  either  side. 
Farther  on  the  valley  widens,  and  a  pretty 
rising  ground,  crowned  by  ruins,  suddenly 
presents  itself  in  the  midst  of  a  wide  plain, 
where  sheep  are  feeding.  Neckarsteinach  it- 
self is  only  a  little  village,  containing,  how- 
ever, three  castles,  two  of  which  are  in  ruins. 


20  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

The  third  is  still  inhabited,  and  commands 
a  magnificent  view.  In  the  evening  we  re- 
turned to  Heidelberg  by  moonlight. 

Another  day  we  started  for  what  is  here 
called  "  The  Mountain,"  though  it  is  at  most 
no  higher  than  Le  Suchet.  As  the  needful 
supplies  are  not  to  be  obtained  there,  we  took 
our  provisions  with  us.  We  had  so  much  fun 
out  of  this,  that  I  must  tell  you  all  about  it. 

In  the  morning  Z bought  at  the  market 

veal,  liver,  and  bacon  enough  to  serve  for 
three  persons  during  two  days.  To  these  sup- 
plies we  added  salt,  pepper,  butter,  onions, 
bread,  and  some  jugs  of  beer.  One  of  us 
took  two  saucepans  for  cooking,  and  some 
alcohol.  Arrived  at  the  summit  of  our  moun- 
tain, we  looked  out  for  a  convenient  spot, 
and  there  we  cooked  our  dinner.  It  did  not 
take  long,  nor  can  I  say  whether  ah*  was  done 
according  to  the  rules  of  art.  But  this  I 
know,  —  that  never  did  a  meal  seem  to  me 
better.  We  wandered  over  the  mountain  for 
the  rest  of  the  day,  and  at  evening  came  to  a 
house  where  we  prepared  our  supper  after  the 
same  fashion,  to  the  great  astonishment  of 
the  assembled  household,  and  especially  of  an 
old  woman  who  regretted  the  death  of  her 
husband,  because  she  said  it  would  certainly 


LETTER    TO  HIS  FATHER.  21 

have  amused  him.  "We  slept  on  the  ground 
on  some  straw,  and  returned  to  Heidelberg 
the  next  day  in  time  for  dinner.  The  fol- 
lowing day  we  went  to  Mannheim  to  visit  the 
theatre.  It  is  very  handsome  and  well  ap- 
pointed, and  we  were  fortunate  in  happening 
upon  an  excellent  opera.  Beyond  this,  I  saw 
nothing  of  Mannheim  except  the  house  of 
Kotzebue  and  the  place  where  Sand  was  be- 
headed. 

To-day  I  have  made  my  visits  to  the  pro- 
fessors. For  three  among  them  I  had  letters 
from  Professors  Schinz  and  Hirzel.  I  was  re- 
ceived by  all  in  the  kindest  way.  Professor 
Tiedemann,  the  Chancellor,  is  a  man  about 
the  age  of  papa  and  young  for  his  years.  He 
is  so  well-known  that  I  need  not  undertake 
his  panegyric  here.  As  soon  as  I  told  him 
that  I  brought  a  letter  from  Zurich,  he  showed 
me  the  greatest  politeness,  offered  me  books 
from  his  library ;  in  one  word,  said  he  would 
be  for  me  here  what  Professor  Schinz,  with 
whom  he  had  formerly  studied,  had  been 
for  me  in  Zurich.  After  the  opening  of  the 
term,  when  I  know  these  gentlemen  better, 
I  will  tell  you  more  about  them.  I  have 
still  to  describe  my  home,  chamber,  garden, 
people  of  the  house,  etc. 


22  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

The  next  letter  fills  in  this  frame-work. 

TO   HIS   FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG,  May  24,  1826. 

.  .  .  According  to  your  request,  I  am  going 
to  write  you  all  possible  details  about  my 
host,  the  employment  of  my  time,  etc.,  etc. 
Mr. ,  my  "  philister,"  is  a  tobacco  mer- 
chant in  easy  circumstances,  having  a  pretty 
house  in  the  faubourg  of  the  city.  My  win- 
dows overlook  the  town,  and  my  prospect  is 
bounded  by  a  hill  situated  to  the  north  of 
Heidelberg.  At  the  back  of  the  house  is  a 
large  and  fine  garden,  at  the  foot  of  which  is 
a  very  pretty  summer-house.  There  are  also 
several  clumps  of  trees  in  the  garden,  and  an 
aviary  filled  with  native  birds.  .  .  . 

Since  each  day  in  term  time  is  only  the 
repetition  of  every  other,  the  account  of  one 
will  give  an  idea  of  all,  especially  as  I  fol- 
low with  regularity  the  plan  of  study  I  have 
formed.  Every  morning  I  rise  at  six  o'clock, 
dress,  and  breakfast.  At  seven  I  go  to  my 
lectures,  given  during  the  morning  in  the 
Museum  building,  next  to  which  is  the  ana- 
tomical laboratory.  If,  in  the  interval,  I 
have  a  free  hour,  as  sometimes  happens  from 
ten  to  eleven,  I  occupy  it  in  making  anatom- 


LETTER    TO  HIS  FATHER.  23 

ical  preparations.  I  shall  tell  you  more  of 
that  and  of  the  Museum  another  time.  From 
twelve  to  one  I  practice  fencing.  We  dine 
at  about  one  o'clock,  after  which  I  walk  till 
two,  when  I  return  to  the  house  and  to  my 
studies  till  five  o'clock.  From  five  to  six  we 
have  a  lecture  from  the  renowned  Tiedemann. 
After  that,  I  either  take  a  bath  in  the  Neckar 
or  another  walk.  From  eight  to  nine  I  re- 
sume my  special  work,  and  then,  according 
to  my  inclination,  go  to  the  Swiss  club,  or, 
if  I  am  tired,  to  bed.  I  have  my  evening 
service  and  talk  silently  with  you,  believing 
that  at  that  hour  you  also  do  not  forget  your 
Louis,  who  thinks  always  of  you.  ...  As  soon 
as  I  know,  for  I  cannot  yet  make  an  exact  es- 
timate, I  will  write  you  as  nearly  as  possible 
what  my  expenses  are  likely  to  be.  Some- 
times there  may  be  unlooked-for  expenditures, 
as,  for  instance,  six  crowns  for  a  matriculation 
paper.  But  be  assured  that  at  all  events  I 
shall  restrict  myself  to  what  is  absolutely  nec- 
essary, and  do  my  best  to  economize.  The 
same  of  the  probable  duration  of  my  stay  in 
Heidelberg ;  I  shall  certainly  not  prolong  it 
needlessly.  .  .  . 

Now  for  the  first  time  the  paths  of  the 


24  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

two  brothers  separated,  Auguste  returning 
from  Zurich  to  Neuchatel,  where  he  entered 
into  business.  It  chanced,  however,  that  in 
one  of  the  first  acquaintances  made  by  Louis 
in  Heidelberg  he  found  not  only  a  congenial 
comrade,  but  a  friend  for  life,  and  in  after 
years  a  brother.  Professor  Tiedemann,  by 
whom  Agassiz  had  been  so  kindly  received, 
recommended  him  to  seek  the  acquaintance  of 
young  Alexander  Braun,  an  ardent  student, 
and  an  especial  lover  of  botany.  At  Tiede- 
mann's  lecture  the  next  day  Agassiz's  attention 
was  attracted  by  a  young  man  who  sat  next 
him,  and  who  was  taking  very  careful  notes 
and  illustrating  them.  There  was  something 
very  winning  in  his  calm,  gentle  face,  full  of 
benevolence  and  intelligence.  Convinced  by 
his  manner  of  listening  to  the  lecture  and 
transcribing  it  that  this  was  the  student  of 
whom  Tiedemann  had  spoken,  Agassiz  turned 
to  his  neighbor  as  they  both  rose  at  the  close 
of  the  hour,  and  said,  "Are  you  Alex. 
Braun  ?  "  "  Yes,  and  you,  Louis  Agassiz  ?  " 
It  seems  that  Professor  Tiedemann,  who  must 
have  had  a  quick  eye  for  affinities  in  the 
moral  as  well  as  in  the  physical  world,  had 
said  to  Braun  also,  that  he  advised  him  to 
make  the  acquaintance  of  a  young  Swiss  natu- 


FRIENDSHIP   WITH  BRAUN.  25 

ralist  who  had  just  come,  and  who  seemed  full 
of  enthusiasm  for  his  work.  The  two  young 
men  left  the  lecture-room  together,  and  from 
that  time  their  studies,  their  excursions,  their 
amusements,  were  undertaken  and  pursued  in 
each  other's  company.  In  their  long  rambles, 
while  they  collected  specimens  in  their  differ- 
ent departments  of  Natural  History,  Braun 
learned  zoology  from  Agassiz,  and  he,  in  his 
turn,  learned  botany  from  Braun.  This  was, 
perhaps,  the  reason  why  Alexander  Braun, 
afterward  Director  of  the  Botanical  Gardens 
in  Berlin,  knew  more  of  zoology  than  other 
botanists,  while  Agassiz  himself  combined  an 
extensive  knowledge  of  botany  with  his  study 
of  the  animal  kingdom.  That  the  attraction 
was  mutual  may  be  seen  by  the  following  ex- 
tract from  a  letter  of  Alexander  Braun  to  his 
father. 

BRAUN   TO   HIS    FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG,  May  12, 1826. 

...  In  my  leisure  hours,  between  the  fore- 
noon and  afternoon  lectures,  I  go  to  the  dis- 
secting-room, where,  in  company  with  another 
young  naturalist  who  has  appeared  like  a 
rare  comet  on  the  Heidelberg  horizon,  I  dis- 
sect all  manner  of  beasts,  such  as  dogs,  cats, 
birds,  fishes,  and  even  smaller  fry,  snails,  but- 


26  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

terflies,  caterpillars,  worms,  and  the  like.  Be- 
side this,  we  always  have  from  Tiedemann  the 
very  best  books  for  reference  and  comparison, 
for  he  has  a  fine  library,  especially  rich  in 
anatomical  works,  and  is  particularly  friendly 
and  obliging  to  us. 

In  the  afternoon  from  two  to  three  I  attend 
Geiger's  lectures  on  pharmaceutical  chemistry, 
and  from  five  to  six  those  of  Tiedemann  on 
comparative  anatomy.  In  the  interval,  I  some- 
times go  with  this  naturalist,  so  recently  ar- 
rived among  us  (his  name  is  Agassiz,  and  he 
is  from  Orbe),  on  a  hunt  after  animals  and 
plants.  Not  only  do  we  collect  and  learn  to 
observe  all  manner  of  things,  but  we  have 
also  an  opportunity  of  exchanging  our  views 
on  scientific  matters  in  general.  I  learn  a 
great  deal  from  him,  for  he  is  much  more  at 
home  in  zoology  than  I  am.  He  is  familiar 
with  almost  all  the  known  mammalia,  recog- 
nizes the  birds  from  far  off  by  their  song,  and 
can  give  a  name  to  every  fish  in  the  water. 
In  the  morning  we  often  stroll  together 
through  the  fish  market,  where  he  explains 
to  me  all  the  different  species.  He  is  going 
to  teach  me  how  to  stuff  fishes,  and  then  we 
intend  to  make  a  collection  of  all  the  native 
kinds.  Many  other  useful  things  he  knows ; 


BRAUN  TO  HIS  MOTHER.  27 

speaks  German  and  French  equally  well,  Eng- 
lish and  Italian  fairly,  so  that  I  have  already 
appointed  him  to  be  my  interpreter  on  some 
future  vacation  trip  to  Italy.  He  is  well  ac- 
quainted with  ancient  languages  also,  and 
studies  medicine  besides.  .  .  . 

A  few  lines  from  Braun  to  his  mother, 
several  weeks  later,  show  that  this  first  en- 
thusiasm, poured  out  with  half-laughing  ex- 
travagance to  his  father,  was  ripening  into 
friendship  of  a  more  serious  character. 


BRAUN   TO    HIS    MOTHER. 


HEIDELBERG,  June  1,  1826. 

...  I  am  very  happy  now  that  I  have 
found  some  one  whose  occupations  are  the 
same  as  mine.  Before  Agassiz  came  I  was 
obliged  to  make  my  excursions  almost  always 
alone,  and  to  study  in  hermit-like  isolation. 
After  all,  two  people  working  together  can 
accomplish  far  more  than  either  one  can  do 
alone.  In  order,  for  instance,  to  utilize  the 
interval  spent  in  the  time-consuming  and  me- 
chanical work  of  preparing  specimens,  pin- 
ning insects  and  the  like,  we  have  agreed 
that  while  one  is  so  employed  the  other  shall 
read  aloud.  In  this  way  we  shall  go  through 


28  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

various  works   on  physiology,  anatomy,  and 
zoology.  .  .  . 

Next  to  Alexander  Braun,  Agassiz's  most 
congenial  companion  at  Heidelberg  was  Karl 
Schimper,  a  friend  of  Braun,  and  like  him 
a  young  botanist  of  brilliant  promise.  The 
three  soon  became  inseparable.  Agassiz  had 
many  friends  and  companions  at  the  univer- 
sity beside  those  who,  on  account  of  their 
influence  upon  his  after  life,  are  mentioned 
here.  He  was  too  affectionate  not  to  be  a 
genial  companion  among  his  young  country- 
men of  whom  there  were  many  at  Heidel- 
berg, where  they  had  a  club  and  a  gymna- 
sium of  their  own.  In  the  latter,  Agassiz 
bore  his  part  in  all  the  athletic  sports,  being 
distinguished  both  as  a  powerful  gymnast  and 
an  expert  fencer. 

Of  the  professors  then  at  Heidelberg, 
Leuckart,  the  zoologist,  was,  perhaps,  the  most 
inspiriting.  His  lectures  were  full  of  original 
suggestions  and  clever  hypotheses,  which  ex- 
cited and  sometimes  amused  his  listeners.  He 
knew  how  to  take  advantage  of  the  enthu- 
siasm of  his  brighter  pupils,  and,  at  their 
request,  gave  them  a  separate  course  of  in- 
struction on  special  groups  of  animals ;  not 


PROFESSORS  AT  HEIDELBERG.          29 

without  some  personal  sacrifice,  for  these 
extra  lectures  were  given  at  seven  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  and  the  students  were  often 
obliged  to  pull  their  professor  out  of  bed  for 
the  purpose.  The  fact  that  they  did  so  shows 
at  least  the  friendly  relation  existing  between 
teacher  and  scholars.  With  Bischoff  the  bot- 
anist also,  the  young  friends  were  admitted  to 
the  most  kindly  intercourse.  Many  a  pleas- 
ant botanical  excursion  they  had  with  him, 
and  they  owed  to  him  a  thorough  and  skill- 
ful instruction  in  the  use  of  the  microscope, 
handled  by  him  like  a  master.  Tiedemann's 
lectures  were  very  learned,  and  Agassiz  always 
spoke  of  his  old  teacher  in  comparative  anat- 
omy and  physiology  with  affectionate  respect 
and  admiration.  He  was  not,  however,  an 
inspiring  teacher,  and  though  an  excellent 
friend  to  the  students,  they  had  no  such  in- 
timate personal  relations  with  him  as  with 
Leuckart  and  Bischoff.  From  Bronn,  the  pa- 
leontologist, they  received  an  immense  amount 
of  special  information,  but  his  instruction  was 
minute  in  details  rather  than  suggestive  in 
ideas ;  and  they  were  glad  when  their  profes- 
sor, finding  that  the  course  must  be  shortened 
for  want  of  time,  displayed  to  them  his  mag- 
nificent collection  of  fossils,  and  with  the  help 


30  LOUIS  AOASSIZ. 

of  the  specimens,  developed  his  subject  in  a 
more  general  and  practical  way.1  Of  the 
medical  professors,  Nageli  was  the  more  in- 
teresting, though  the  reputation  of  Chelius 
brought  him  a  larger  audience.  If  there  was 
however  any  lack  of  stimulus  in  the  lecture- 
rooms,  the  young  friends  made  good  the  de- 
ficiency by  their  own  indefatigable  and  intelli- 
gent study  of  nature,  seeking  to  satisfy  their 
craving  for  knowledge  by  every  means  within 
their  reach.2 

As  the  distance  and  expense  made  it  impos- 
sible for  Agassiz  to  spend  his  vacations  with 
his  family  in  Switzerland,  it  soon  became  the 
habit  for  him  to  pass  the  holidays  with  his 
new  friend  at  Carlsruhe.  For  a  young  man 
of  his  tastes  and  acquirements  a  more  charm- 
ing home-life  than  the  one  to  which  he  was 
here  introduced  can  hardly  be  imagined.  The 

1  This  collection  was  purchased  in  1859  by  the  Museum 
of  Comparative  Zoology  in  Cambridge,  Massachusetts,  and 
Agassiz  had  thus  the  pleasure  of  teaching  his  American  pu- 
pils from  the  very  collection  in  which  he  had  himself  made 
his  first  important  paleontological  studies. 

2  The  material  for  this  account  of  the  student  life  of  the 
two  friends  at  Heidelberg  and  of  their  teachers  was  chiefly 
furnished  by  Alexander  Braun  himself  at  the  close  of  his 
own  life,  after  the  death  of  Agassiz.     The  later  sketches  of 
the  Professors  at  Munich  in  1832  were  drawn  in  great  part 
from  the  same  source. 


VACATIONS.  31 

whole  atmosphere  was  in  harmony  with  the 
pursuits  of  the  students.  The  house  was  sim- 
ple in  its  appointments,  but  rich  in  books, 
music,  and  in  all  things  stimulating  to  the 
thought  and  imagination.  It  stood  near  one 
of  the  city  gates  which  opened  into  an  exten- 
sive oak  forest,  in  itself  an  admirable  collect- 
ing ground  for  the  naturalist.  At  the  back 
certain  rooms,  sheltered  by  the  spacious  gar- 
den from  the  noise  of  the  street,  were  devoted 
to  science.  In  the  first  of  these  rooms  the 
father's  rich  collection  of  minerals  was  ar- 
ranged, and  beyond  this  were  the  laboratories 
of  his  sons  and  their  friends,  where  specimens 
of  all  sorts,  dried  and  living  plants,  micro- 
scopes and  books  of  reference,  covered  the 
working  tables.  Here  they  brought  their 
treasures ;  here  they  drew,  studied,  dissected, 
arranged  their  specimens ;  here  they  discussed 
the  theories,  with  which  their  young  brains 
were  teeming,  about  the  growth,  structure, 
and  relations  of  animals  and  plants.1 

From  this  house,  which  became  a  second 
home  to  Agassiz,  he  wrote  to  his  father  in 
the  Christmas  holidays  of  1826 :  .  .  .  "  My 
happiness  would  be  perfect  were  it  not  for 

1  See  Biographical  Memoir  of  Louis  Agassiz,   by  Arnold 
Guyo*,  in  the  proceedings  of  U.  S.  National  Academy. 


32  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

the  painful  thought  which  pursues  me  every- 
where, that  I  live  on  your  privations;  yet  it  is 
impossible  for  me  to  diminish  my  expenses 
farther.  You  would  lift  a  great  weight  from 
my  heart  if  you  could  relieve  yourself  of  this 
burden  by  an  arrangement  with  my  uncle 
at  Neuchatel.  I  am  confident  that  when  I 
have  finished  my  studies  I  could  easily  make 
enough  to  repay  him.  At  all  events,  I  know 
that  you  cannot  pay  the  whole  at  once,  and 
therefore  in  telling  me  frankly  what  are  our 
resources  for  this  object  you  would  do  me 
the  greatest  favor.  Until  I  know  that,  I 
cannot  be  at  peace.  Otherwise,  I  am  well, 
going  on  as  usual,  always  working  as  hard  as 
I  can,  and  I  believe  all  the  professors  whose 
lectures  I  attend  are  satisfied  with  me."  .  .  . 
His  father  was  also  pleased  with  his  conduct 
and  with  his  progress,  for  about  this  time  he 
writes  to  a  friend,  "  We  have  the  best  possi- 
ble news  of  Louis.  Courageous,  industrious, 
and  discreet,  he  pursues  honorably  and  vigor- 
ously his  aim,  namely,  the  degree  of  Doctor 
of  Medicine  and  Surgery." 

In  the  spring  of  1827  Agassiz  fell  ill  of  a 
typhus  fever  prevalent  at  the  university  as  an 
epidemic.  His  life  was  in  danger  for  many 
days.  As  soon  as  he  could  be  moved,  Braun 


RETURN  TO  SWITZERLAND.  33 

took  him  to  Carlsruhe,  where  his  conva- 
lescence was  carefully  watched  over  by  his 
friend's  mother.  Being  still  delicate  he  was 
advised  to  recruit  in  his  native  air,  and  he  re- 
turned to  Orbe,  accompanied  by  Braun,  who 
did  not  leave  him  till  he  had  placed  him  in 
safety  with  his  parents.  The  following  ex- 
tracts from  the  correspondence  between  him- 
self and  Braun  give  some  account  of  this  in- 
terval spent  at  home. 

AGASSIZ   TO   BRAUN. 

ORBE,  May  26,  1827. 

.  .  .  Since  I  have  been  here,  I  have 
walked  faithfully  and  have  collected  a  good 
number  of  plants  which  are  not  yet  dry.  I 
have  more  than  one  hundred  kinds,  about 
twenty  specimens  of  each.  As  soon  as  they 
can  be  taken  out  of  the  press,  I  '11  send  you  a 
few  specimens  of  each  kind  with  a  number  at- 
tached so  that  you  may  identify  them.  Take 
care  that  you  do  not  displace  the  numbers  in 
opening  the  package.  Should  you  want  more 
of  any  particular  kind  let  me  know ;  also 
whether  Schimper  wishes  for  any.  .  .  .  At 
Neuchatel  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  at 
least  thirty  specimens  of  Bombinator  obstet- 
ricans  with  the  eggs.  Tell  Dr.  Leuckart  that 

VOL.  I.  3 


34  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

I  will  bring  him  some,  —  and  some  for  you 
also.  I  kept  several  alive  laid  in  damp  moss ; 
after  fourteen  days  the  eggs  were  almost  as 
large  as  peas,  and  the  little  tadpoles  moved 
about  inside  in  all  directions.  The  mother 
stripped  the  eggs  from  her  legs,  and  one  of 
the  little  tadpoles  came  out,  but  died  for  want 
of  water.  Then  I  placed  the  whole  mass  of 
eggs  in  a  vessel  filled  with  water,  and  be- 
hold! in  about  an  hour  some  twenty  young 
ones  were  swimming  freely  about.  I  shall 
spare  no  pains  to  raise  them,  and  I  hope,  if 
I  begin  aright,  to  make  fine  toads  of  them  in 
the  end.  My  oldest  sister  is  busy  every  day 
in  making  drawings  for  me  to  illustrate  their 
gradual  development.  ...  I  dissect  now  as 
much  and  on  as  great  a  variety  of  subjects 
as  possible.  This  makes  my  principal  occu- 
pation. I  am  often  busy  too  with  Oken.  His 
"  Natur- philosophic  "  gives  me  the  greatest 
pleasure.  I  long  for  my  box,  being  in  need 
of  my  books,  which,  no  doubt,  you  have  sent. 
Meantime,  I  am  reading  something  of  Univer- 
sal History,  and  am  not  idle,  as  you  see.  But 
I  miss  the  evenings  with  you  and  Schimper 
at  Heidelberg,  and  wish  I  were  with  you  once 
more.  I  am  afraid  when  that  happy  time 
does  come,  it  will  be  only  too  short.  .  .  . 


CORRESPONDENCE   WITH  BRAUN.        35 


BKAUN  TO   AGASSIZ. 

HEIDELBERG,  May,  1827. 

...  On  Thursday  evening,  the  10th,  I 
reached  Heidelberg.  The  medical  lectures 
did  not  begin  till  the  second  week  of  May,  so 
that  I  have  missed  little,  and  almost  regret 
having  returned  so  soon.  ...  I  passed  the 
last  afternoon  in  Basel  very  pleasantly  with 
Herr  Koepper,  to  whom  I  must  soon  write. 
He  gave  me  a  variety  of  specimens,  showed 
me  many  beautiful  things,  and  told  me  much 
that  was  instructive.  He  is  a  genuine  and  ex- 
cellent botanist,  and  no  mere  collector  like  the 
majority.  Neither  is  he  purely  an  observer 
like  Dr.  Bischoff,  but  a  man  who  thinks.  .  .  . 
Dr.  Leuckart  is  in  raptures  about  the  eggs  of 
the  "  Hebammen  Krote,"  and  will  raise  them. 
.  .  .  Schweiz  takes  your  place  in  our  erudite 
evening  meetings.  I  have  been  lecturing  lately 
on  the  metamorphosis  of  plants,  and  Schimper 
has  propounded  an  entirely  new  and  very  inter- 
esting theory,  which  will,  no  doubt,  find  favor 
with  you  hereafter,  about  the  significance  of 
the  circular  and  longitudinal  fibres  in  organ- 
isms. Schimper  is  fruitful  as  ever  in  poetical 
and  philosophical  ideas,  and  has  just  now  ven- 
tured upon  a  natural  history  of  the  mind.  We 


36  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

have  introduced  mathematics  also,  and  he  has 
advanced  a  new  hypothesis  about  comets  and 
their  long  tails.  .  .  .  Our  chief  botanical 
occupation  this  summer  is  the  careful  obser- 
vation of  all  our  plants,  even  the  commonest, 
and  the  explanation  of  whatever  is  unusual 
or  enigmatical  in  their  structure.  We  have 
already  cracked  several  such  nuts,  but  many 
remain  to  be  opened.  All  such  puzzling  speci- 
mens are  spread  on  single  sheets  and  set  aside. 
.  .  .  But  more  of  this  when  we  are  together 
again.  .  .  .  Dr.  Leuckart  begs  you  to  study 
carefully  the  "  Hebammen  Unke;  "  to  no- 
tice whether  the  eggs  are  already  fecundated 
when  they  are  in  the  earth,  or  whether  they 
copulate  later  in  the  water,  or  whether  the 
young  are  hatched  on  land,  and  what  is  their 
tadpole  condition,  etc.  All  this  is  still  un- 
known. .  .  . 

AGASSIZ   TO   BBAITN. 

ORBE,  June  10,  1827. 

.  .  .  Last  week  I  made  a  very  pleasant 
excursion.  You  will  remember  that  I  have 
often  spoken  to  you  of  Pastor  Mellet  at  Vall- 
orbe,  who  is  much  interested  in  the  study  of 
the  six-legged  insects.  He  invited  me  to  go 

1  Bombinator  obstetricans  referred  to  in  a  former  letter. 


CORRESPONDENCE    WITH  BRA  UN.        37 

to  Vallorbe  with  him  for  some  days,  and  I 
passed  a  week  there,  spending  my  time  most 
agreeably.  We  went  daily  on  a  search  after 
insects ;  the  booty  was  especially  rich  in  bee- 
tles and  butterflies.  ...  I  examined  also  M. 
Mellet's  own  most  excellent  collection  of  bee- 
tles and  butterflies  very  carefully.  He  has 
many  beautiful  things,  but  almost  exclusively 
Swiss  or  French,  with  a  few  from  Brazil,  —  in 
all  about  3,000  species.  He  gave  me  several, 
and  promises  more  in  the  autumn.  .  .  .  He 
knows  his  beetles  thoroughly,  and  observes 
their  habits,  haunts,  and  changes  (as  far  as  he 
can)  admirably  well.  It  is  a  pity  though  that 
while  his  knowledge  of  species  is  so  accurate, 
he  knows  nothing  of  distribution,  classifica- 
tion, or  general  relations.  I  tried  to  convince 
him  that  he  ought  to  collect  snails,  slugs,  and 
other  objects  of  natural  history,  in  the  hope 
that  he  might  gain  thereby  a  wider  insight. 
But  he  would  not  listen  to  it ;  he  said  he 
had  enough  to  do  with  his  Vermine. 

My  brother  writes  me  that  my  box  has  ar- 
rived in  Neuchatel.  As  I  am  going  there 
soon  I  will  take  it  then.  I  rejoice  in  the 
thought  of  being  in  Neuchatel,  partly  on  ac- 
count of  my  brother,  Arnold  (Guyot),  and 
other  friends,  and  partly  that  I  may  study  the 


38  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

fishes  of  our  Swiss  lakes.  The  species  Cypri- 
nus  and  Corregonus  with  their  allies,  including 
Salmo,  are,  as  you  know,  especially  difficult. 
I  will  preserve  some  small  specimens  in  alco- 
hol, and,  if  possible,  dissect  one  of  each,  in 
order  to  satisfy  myself  as  to  their  identity  or 
specific  variety.  As  the  same  kinds  have  re- 
ceived different  names  in  different  lakes,  and 
since  even  differences  of  age  have  led  to  dis- 
tinct designations,  I  will  note  all  this  down 
carefully.  When  I  have  made  it  clear  to  my- 
self, I  will  send  you  a  catalogue  of  the  kinds 
we  possess,  specifying  at  the  same  time  the 
lakes  in  which  they  occur.  As  I  am  on  the 
chapter  of  fishes,  I  will  ask  you  :  1.  What  are 
the  gill  arches?  2.  What  the  gill  blades?  3. 
What  is  the  bladder  in  fishes  ?  4.  What  is 
the  cloaca  in  the  egg  -  laying  animals  ?  5. 
What  signify  the  many  fins  of  fishes?  6. 
What  is  the  sac  which  surrounds  the  eggs 
in  Bombinator  obstetricans  ?  .  .  .  Tell  Dr. 
Leuckart  I  have  already  put  aside  for  him  the 
Corregonus  umbla  (if  such  it  be),  but  can  get 
no  Silurus  glanis. 

I  suppose  you  continue  to  come  together 
now  and  then  in  the  evening.  .  .  .  Make  me 
a  sharer  in  your  new  discoveries.  Have  you 
finished  your  essay  on  the  physiology  of  plants, 
and  what  do  you  make  of  it  ?  .  .  . 


CORRESPONDENCE   WITH  BRA  UN.        39 

BRAUN   TO   AGASSIZ. 

CARLSRUHE,  Whitsuntide,  Monday,  1827. 

...  I  am  in  Carlsruhe,  and  as  the  pack- 
age has  not  gone  yet,  I  add  a  note.  I  have 
been  analyzing  and  comparing  all  sorts  of 
plants  in  our  garden  to-day,  and  I  wish  you 
had  been  with  me.  On  my  last  sheet  I  send 
some  nuts  for  you  to  pick,  some  wholly,  some 
half,  others  not  at  all,  cracked.  Schimper  is 
lost  in  the  great  impenetrable  world  of  suns, 
with  their  planets,  moons,  and  comets ;  he 
soars  even  into  the  region  of  the  double  stars, 
the  milky  way,  and  the  nebulae. 

On  a  loose  sheet  come  the  "  nuts  to  pick." 
It  contains  a  long  list  of  mooted  questions,  a 
few  of  which  are  given  here  to  show  the  ex- 
change of  thought  between  Agassiz  and  his 
friend,  the  one  propounding  zoological,  the 
other  botanical,  puzzles.  Although  most  of 
the  problems  were  solved  long  ago,  it  is  not 
uninteresting  to  follow  these  young  minds  in 
their  search  after  the  laws  of  structure  and 
growth,  dimly  perceived  at  first,  but  becoming 
gradually  clearer  as  they  go  on.  The  very 
first  questions  hint  at  the  law  of  Phyllotaxis, 
then  wholly  unknown,  though  now  it  makes 


40  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

a  part  of  the  most  elementary  instruction  in 
botany.1 

"  1.  Where  is  the  first  diverging  point  of 
the  stems  and  roots  in  plants,  that  is  to  say, 
the  first  genicuhun? 

"  2.  How  do  you  explain  the  origin  of  those 
leaves  on  the  stem  which,  not  arising  from 
distinct  geniculi,  are  placed  spirally  or  scat- 
tered around  the  stem  ? 

"3.  Why  do  some  plants,  especially  trees 
(contrary  to  the  ordinary  course  of  develop- 
ment in  plants),  blossom  before  they  have  put 
forth  leaves?  (Elm-trees,  willow-trees,  and 
fruit-trees.) 

"  4.  In  what  succession  does  the  develop- 
ment of  the  organs  of  the  flower  take  place  ? 
—  and  their  formation  in  the  bud?  (Com- 
pare Campanula,  Papaver.) 

"  5.  What  are  the  leaves  of  the  Spergula  ? 

"  6.  What  are  the  tufted  leaves  of  various 
pine-trees  ?  (Pinus  sylvestris,  Strobus,  Larix, 
etc.)  .  .  . 

"  18.  What  is  individuality  in  plants?  " 

The  next  letter  contains  Agassiz's  answer  to 

1  Botany  owes  to  Alexander  Braun  and  Karl  Schimper  the 
discovery  of  this  law,  by  which  leaves,  however  crowded,  are 
so  arranged  around  the  stem  as  to  divide  the  space  with 
mathematical  precision,  thus  giving  to  each  leaf  its  fair  share 
of  room  for  growth. 


CORRESPONDENCE    WITH  BRAUN.       41 

Dr.  Leuckart's  questions  concerning  the  eggs 
he  had  sent  him,  and  some  farther  account  of 
his  own  observations  upon  them. 

AGASSIZ   TO   BRAUN. 

NEUCHATEL,  June  20, 1827. 

.  .  .  Now  you  shall  hear  what  I  know  of 
the  "  Hebammen  Krote."  How  the  fecunda- 
tion takes  place  I  know  not,  but  it  must  needs 
be  the  same  as  in  other  kinds  of  the  related 
Bombinator ;  igneus  throws  out  almost  as 
many  eggs  hanging  together  in  clusters  as 
obstetricans  ;  fuscus  throws  them  out  from  it- 
self in  strings  (see  Roseld's  illustration).  ...  I 
have  naw  carefully  examined  the  egg  clusters 
of  obstetricans  ;  all  the  eggs  are  in  one  string 
and  hang  together.  This  string  is  a  bag,  in 
which  the  eggs  lie  inclosed  at  different  dis- 
tances, though  they  seem  in  the  empty  space 
to  be  fallen,  thread-like,  together.  But  if  you 
stretch  the  thread  and  press  the  eggs,  they 
change  their  places,  and  you  can  distinctly  see 
that  they  lie  free  in  the  bag,  having  their  own 
membranous  envelopes  corresponding  to  those 
of  other  batrachian  eggs.  Surely  this  species 
seeks  the  water  at  the  time  of  fecundation, 
for  so  do  all  batrachians,  the  water  being  in- 
deed a  more  fitting  medium  for  fecundation 


42  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

than  the  air.  ...  It  is  certain  that  the  eggs 
were  already  fecundated  when  we  found  them 
in  the  ground,  for  later,  I  found  several  not  so 
far  advanced  as  those  you  have,  and  yet  after 
three  weeks  I  had  tadpoles  from  them.  In 
those  eggs  which  were  in  the  lowest  stage 
of  development  (how  they  may  be  earlier,  ne- 
scio),  nothing  was  clearly  visible ;  they  were 
simply  little  yellow  balls.  After  some  days, 
two  small  dark  spots  were  to  be  seen  mark- 
ing the  position  of  the  eyes,  and  a  longitu- 
dinal streak  indicated  the  dorsal  ridge.  Pres- 
ently everything  became  more  distinct ;  the 
mouth  and  the  nasal  opening,  the  eyes  and 
the  tail,  which  lay  in  a  half  circle  around 
the  body;  the  skin  was  so  transparent  that 
the  beating  of  the  heart  and  the  blood  in  the 
vessels  could  be  easily  distinguished ;  the  yolk 
and  the  yolk  sac  were  meanwhile  sensibly  di- 
minished. The  movements  of  the  little  ani- 
mal were  now  quite  perceptible,  —  they  were 
quick  and  by  starts.  After  three  or  four 
weeks  the  eggs  were  as  large  as  peas;  the 
bags  had  burst  at  the  spots  where  the  eggs 
were  attached,  and  the  little  creatures  filled 
the  egg  envelopes  completely.  They  moved 
incessantly  and  very  quickly.  Now  the  fe- 
male stripped  off  the  eggs  from  her  legs ;  she 


CORRESPONDENCE    WITH  BRAUN.         43 

seemed  very  uneasy,  and  sprang  about  con- 
stantly in  the  tank,  but  grew  more  quiet  when 
I  threw  in  more  water.  The  eggs  were  soon 
free,  and  I  laid  them  in  a  shallow  vessel  filled 
with  fresh  water.  The  restlessness  among 
them  now  became  greater,  and  behold  !  like 
lightning,  a  little  tadpole  slipped  out  of  its 
egg,  paused  astonished,  gazed  on  the  great- 
ness of  the  world,  made  some  philanthropic 
observations,  and  swam  quickly  away.  I  gave 
them  fresh  water  often,  and  tender  green 
plants  as  well  as  bread  to  eat.  They  ate  ea- 
gerly. Up  to  this  time  their  different  stages 
of  development  had  been  carefully  drawn  by 
my  sister.  I  now  went  to  Yallorbe;  they 
promised  at  home  to  take  care  of  my  young 
brood,  but  when  I  returned  the  tadpoles  had 
been  forgotten,  and  I  found  them  all  dead; 
not  yet  decayed,  however,  and  I  could  there- 
fore preserve  them  in  alcohol.  The  gills  I 
have  never  seen,  but  I  will  watch  to  see 
whether  they  are  turned  inward.  .  .  . 


BRAUN    TO    AGASSIZ. 


CARLSRUHE,  August  9, 1827. 

.  .  .  This  is  to  tell  you  that  I  have  deter- 
mined to  leave  Heidelberg  in  the  autumn  and 
set  forth  on  a  pilgrimage  to  Munich,  and  that 


44  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

I  invite  you  to  be  my  traveling  companion. 
Judging  by  a  circumstantial  letter  from  Dol- 
linger,  the  instruction  in  the  natural  sciences 
leaves  nothing  to  be  desired  there.  Add  to 
this  that  the  lectures  are  free,  and  the  theatre 
open  to  students  at  twenty-four  kreutzers.  No 
lack  of  advantages  and  attractions,  lodgings 
hardly  more  expensive  than  at  Heidelberg, 
board  equally  cheap,  beer  plenty  and  good. 
Let  all  this  persuade  you.  We  shall  hear 
Gruithuisen  in  popular  astronomy,  Schubert 
in  general  natural  history,  Martius  in  botany, 
Fuchs  in  mineralogy,  Seiber  in  mathematics, 
Starke  in  physics,  Oken  in  everything  (he 
lectures  in  winter  on  the  philosophy  of  nature, 
natural  history,  and  physiology).  The  clinical 
instruction  will  be  good.  We  shall  soon  be 
friends  with  all  the  professors.  The  library 
contains  whatever  is  best  in  botany  and  zool- 
ogy, and  the  collections  open  to  the  public 
are  very  rich.  It  is  not  known  whether  Schel- 
ling  will  lecture,  but  at  all  events  certain  of 
the  courses  will  be  of  great  advantage.  Then 
little  vacation  trips  to  the  Salzburg  and  Carin- 
thian  Alps  are  easily  made  from  there  !  Write 
soon  whether  you  will  go  and  drink  Bavarian 
beer  and  Schnapski  with  me,  and  write  also 
when  we  are  to  see  you  in  Heidelberg  and 


PLANS  FOR   MUNICH.  45 

Carlsruhe.  Remind  me  then  to  tell  you  about 
the  theory  of  the  root  and  poles  in  plants. 
As  soon  as  I  have  your  answer  we  will  be- 
speak our  lodgings  from  Dollinger,  who  will 
attend  to  that  for  us.  Shall  we  again  house 
together  in  one  room,  or  shall  we  have  sepa- 
rate cells  in  one  comb,  namely,  under  the  same 
roof  ?  The  latter  has  its  advantages  for  grass- 
gatherers  and  stone-cutters  like  ourselves.  .  .  . 
Hammer  away  industriously  at  all  sorts  of 
rocks.  I  have  collected  at  Auerbach,  Wein- 
heim,  Wiesloch,  etc.  But  before  all  else,  ob- 
serve carefully  and  often  the  wonderful  struc- 
ture of  plants,  those  lovely  children  of  the 
earth  and  sky.  Ponder  them  with  child-like 
mind,  for  children  marvel  at  the  phenomena 
of  nature,  while  grown  people  often  think 
themselves  too  wise  to  wonder,  and  yet  they 
know  little  more  than  the  children.  But  the 
thoughtful  student  recognizes  the  truth  of  the 
child's  feeling,  and  with  his  knowledge  of 
nature  his  wonder  does  but  grow  more  and 
more. 


CHAPTER    H. 

1827-1828:  ^T.  20-21. 

Arrival  in  Munich.  —  Lectures.  —  Relations  with  the  Pro- 
fessors. —  Schelling,  Martins,  Oken,  Dollinger.  —  Relations 
with  Fellow-Students.  —  The  Little  Academy.  —  Plans  for 
Traveling. — Advice  from  his  Parents.  —  Vacation  Journey. 
—  Tri-Centennial  Diirer  Festival  at  Nuremberg. 

AGASSIZ  accepted  with  delight  his  friend's 
proposition,  and  toward  the  end  of  October, 
1827,  he  and  Braun  left  Carlsruhe  together 
for  the  University  of  Munich.  His  first  letter 
to  his  brother  is  given  in  full,  for  though  it 
contains  crudities  at  which  the  writer  himself 
would  have  smiled  in  after  life,  it  is  interest- 
ing as  showing  what  was  the  knowledge  pos- 
sessed in  those  days  by  a  clever,  well-informed 
student  of  natural  history. 

TO   HIS   BROTHER    AUGUSTE. 

MUNICH,  November  5,  1827. 

...  At  last  I  am  in  Munich.  I  have  so 
much  to  tell  you  that  I  hardly  know  where  to 
begin.  To  be  sure  that  I  forget  nothing, 


LETTER   TO  HIS  BROTHER.  47 

however,  I  will  give  things  in  their  regular  se- 
quence. First,  then,  the  story  of  my  journey ; 
after  that,  I  will  tell  you  what  I  am  doing 
here.  As  papa  has,  of  course,  shown  you  my 
last  letter,  I  will  continue  where  I  left  off.  .  .  . 
From  Carlsruhe  we  traveled  post  to  Stutt- 
gart, where  we  passed  the  greater  part  of  the 
day  in  the  Museum,  in  which  I  saw  many 
things  quite  new  to  me  ;  a  llama,  for  instance, 
almost  as  large  as  an  ass.  You  know  that 
this  animal,  which  is  of  the  genus  Camelus, 
lives  in  South  America,  where  it  is  to  the 
natives  what  the  camel  is  to  the  Arab ;  that 
is  to  say,  it  provides  them  with  milk,  wool, 
and  meat,  and  is  used  by  them,  moreover, 
for  driving  and  riding.  There  was  a  North 
American  buffalo  of  immense  size;  also  an 
elephant  from  Africa,  and  one  from  Asia ;  be- 
side these,  a  prodigious  number  of  gazelles, 
deer,  cats,  and  dogs ;  skeletons  of  a  hippo- 
potamus and  an  elephant ;  and  lastly  the  fossil 
bones  of  a  mammoth.  You  know  that  the 
mammoth  is  no  longer  found  living,  and  that 
the  remains  hitherto  discovered  lead  to  the 
belief  that  it  was  a  species  of  carnivorous  ele- 
phant. It  is  a  singular  fact  that  some  fisher- 
men, digging  recently  on  the  borders  of  the 
Obi,  in  Siberia,  found  one  of  these  animals 


48  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

frozen  in  a  mass  of  ice,  at  a  depth  of  sixty 
feet,  so  well  preserved  that  it  was  still  covered 
with  hair,  as  in  life.  They  melted  the  ice  to 
remove  the  animal,  but  the  skeleton  alone  re- 
mained complete ;  the  hide  was  spoiled  by  con- 
tact with  the  air,  and  only  a  few  pieces  have 
been  kept,  one  of  which  is  in  the  Museum  at 
Stuttgart.  The  hairs  upon  it  are  as  coarse  as 
fine  twine,  and  nearly  a  foot  long.  The  entire 
skeleton  is  at  St.  Petersburg  in  the  Museum, 
and  is  larger  than  the  largest  elephant.  One 
may  judge  by  that  what  havoc  such  an  ani- 
mal must  have  made,  if  it  was,  as  its  teeth 
show  it  to  have  been,  carnivorous.  But  what 
I  would  like  to  know  is  how  this  animal  could 
wander  so  far  north,  and  then  in  what  man- 
ner it  died,  to  be  frozen  thus,  and  remain  in- 
tact, without  decomposing,  perhaps  for  count- 
less ages.  For  it  must  have  belonged  to  a 
former  creation,  since  it  is  nowhere  to  be 
found  living,  and  we  have  no  instance  of  the 
disappearance  of  any  kind  of  animal  within 
the  historic  period.  There  were,  besides, 
many  other  kinds  of  fossil  animals.  The  col- 
lection of  birds  is  very  beautiful,  but  it  is  a 
pity  that  many  of  them  are  wrongly  named. 
I  corrected  a  number  myself.  .  .  .  From 
Stuttgart  we  went  to  Esslingen,  where  we 


LETTER   TO  HIS  BROTHER.  49 

were  to  visit  two  famous  botanists.  One  was 
Herr  Steudel ;  a  sombre  face,  with  long  over- 
hanging black  hair,  almost  hiding  the  eyes, 
—  a  very  Jewish  face.  He  knows  every  book 
on  botany  that  appears,  has  read  them  all, 
but  cares  little  to  see  the  plants  themselves ; 
in  short,  he  is  a  true  closet  student.  He  has 
a  large  herbarium,  composed  in  great  part  of 
plants  purchased  or  received  as  gifts.  The 
other,  Professor  Hochstetter,  is  an  odd  little 
man,  stepping  briskly  about  in  his  high  boots, 
and  having  always  a  half  suppressed  smile  on 
his  lips  whenever  he  takes  the  pipe  from  be- 
tween his  teeth.  A  very  good  man,  however, 
and  extremely  obliging;  he  offered  us  every 
civility.  As  we  desired  not  only  to  make  their 
acquaintance,  but  to  win  from  these  bota- 
nists at  least  a  few  grasses,  we  presented  our- 
selves like  true  commis  voyageurs,  with  dried 
herbs  to  sell,  each  of  us  having  a  package 
of  plants  under  his  arm,  —  mine  being  Swiss, 
gathered  last  summer,  Braun's  from  the  Pa- 
latinate. We  gave  specimens  to  each,  and 
received  in  exchange  from  Steudel  some  Amer- 
ican plants ;  from  Hochstetter  some  from  Bo- 
hemia, and  others  from  Moravia,  his  native 
country.  From  Esslingen  we  were  driven  to 
Goeppingen,  in  the  most  frightful  weather 


VOL.   I. 


50  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

possible;  it  rained,  snowed,  froze,  blew,  all 
at  once.  It  was  a  pity,  since  our  road  lay 
through  one  of  the  prettiest  valleys  I  have 
ever  seen,  watered  by  the  Neckar,  and  bor- 
dered on  both  sides  by  mountains  of  singular 
form  and  of  considerable  height.  They  are 
what  the  Wurtembergers  call  the  Suabian 
Alps,  but  I  think  that  Chaumont  is  higher 
than  the  loftiest  peak  of  their  Alps.  Here  we 
found  an  old  Heidelberg  acquaintance,  whose 
father  owns  a  superb  collection  of  fossils,  es- 
pecially of  shells  and  zoophytes.  He  has  also 
quite  a  large  collection  of  shells  from  the 
Adriatic  Sea,  but  among  these  last  not  one 
was  named.  As  we  knew  them,  we  made  it 
our  duty  to  arrange  them,  and  in  three  hours 
his  whole  collection  was  labeled.  Since  he 
has  duplicates  of  almost  everything,  he  prom- 
ised, as  soon  as  he  should  have  time,  to  make 
a  selection  from  these  and  send  them  to  us. 
Could  we  have  stayed  longer  we  might  have 
picked  out  what  we  pleased,  for  he  placed  his 
collection  at  our  disposal.  But  we  were  in 
haste  to  arrive  here,  so  we  begged  him  to  send 
us,  at  his  leisure,  whatever  he  could  give  us. 

Thence  we  continued  our  journey  by  post, 
because  it  still  rained,  and  the  roads  were  so 
detestable  that  with  the  best  will  in  the  world 


LETTER   TO  HIS  BROTHER.  61 

we  could  not  have  made  our  way  on  foot.  In 
the  evening  we  reached  Ulm,  where,  owing  to 
the  late  hour,  we  saw  almost  nothing  except 
the  famous  belfry  of  the  cathedral,  which 
was  distinctly  visible  as  we  entered  the  city. 
After  supper  we  continued  our  journey,  still 
by  post,  wishing  to  be  in  Munich  the  next 
day.  I  have  never  seen  anything  more  beau- 
tiful than  the  view  as  we  left  Ulm.  The 
moon  had  risen  and  shone  upon  the  belfry 
like  broad  daylight.  On  all  sides  extended  a 
wide  plain,  unbroken  by  a  single  inequality, 
so  far  as  the  eye  could  distinguish,  and  cut 
by  the  Danube,  glittering  in  the  moonbeams. 
We  crossed  the  plain  during  the  night,  and 
reached  Augsburg  at  dawn.  It  is  a  beautiful 
city,  but  we  merely  stopped  there  for  break- 
fast, and  saw  the  streets  only  as  we  passed 
through  them.  On  leaving  Augsburg,  the 
Tyrolean  Alps,  though  nearly  forty  leagues 
away,  were  in  sight.  About  eighteen  leagues 
off  was  also  discernible  an  immense  forest ;  of 
this  we  had  a  nearer  view  as  we  advanced,  for 
it  encircles  Munich  at  some  distance  from  the 
town.  We  arrived  here  on  Sunday,  the  4th, 
in  the  afternoon.  .  .  .  My  address  is  opposite 
the  Sendlinger  Thor  No.  37.  I  have  a  very 
pretty  chamber  on  the  lower  floor  with  an  al- 


52  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

cove  for  my  bed.  The  house  is  situated  out- 
side the  town,  on  a  promenade,  which  makes 
it  very  pleasant.  Moreover,  by  walking  less 
than  a  hundred  yards,  I  reach  the  Hospital 
and  the  Anatomical  School,  — a  great  conven- 
ience for  me  when  the  winter  weather  begins. 
One  thing  gives  me  great  pleasure  :  from  one 
of  my  windows  the  whole  chain  of  the  Tyrol- 
ean Alps  is  visible  as  far  as  Appenzell ;  and 
as  the  country  is  flat  to  their  very  base,  I  see 
them  better  than  we  see  our  Alps  from  the 
plain.  It  is  a  great  pleasure  to  have  at  least 
a  part  of  our  Swiss  mountains  always  in  sight. 
To  enjoy  it  the  more,  I  have  placed  my  table 
opposite  the  window,  so  that  every  time  I  lift 
my  head  my  eyes  rest  on  our  dear  country. 
This  does  not  prevent  me  from  feeling  dull 
sometimes,  especially  when  I  am  alone,  but  I 
hope  this  will  pass  off  when  my  occupations 
become  more  regular.  .  .  . 

A  far  more  stimulating  intellectual  life  than 
that  of  Heidelberg  awaited  our  students  at 
Munich.  Among  their  professors  were  some 
of  the  most  original  men  of  the  day,  —  men 
whose  influence  was  felt  all  over  Europe. 
Dollinger  lectured  on  comparative  anatomy 
and  kindred  subjects ;  Martius  and  Zuccarini 


RELATIONS  WITH  PROFESSORS.    53 

on  botany.  Martius  gave,  besides,  his  so- 
called  "  Reise-Colleg,"  in  which  he  instructed 
the  students  how  to  observe  while  on  their 
travels.  Schelling  taught  philosophy,  the  ti- 
tles of  his  courses  in  the  first  term  being,  "  In- 
troduction to  Philosophy "  and  "  The  Ages 
of  the  World  "  ;  in  the  second,  "  The  Philos- 
ophy of  Mythology "  and  "  The  Philosophy 
of  Revelation."  Schelling  made  a  strong  im- 
pression upon  the  friends.  His  manner  was 
as  persuasive  as  his  style  was  clear,  and  his 
mode  of  developing  his  subject  led  his  hear- 
ers along  with  a  subtle  power  which  did  not 
permit  fatigue.  Oken  lectured  on  general  nat- 
ural history,  physiology,  and  zoology,  includ- 
ing his  famous  views  on  the  philosophy  of  na- 
ture (Natur -philosophic).  His  lectures  gave 
occasion  for  much  scientific  discussion,  the 
more  so  as  he  brought  very  startling  hypoth- 
eses into  his  physiology,  and  drew  from  them 
conclusions  which  even  upon  his  own  showing 
were  not  always  in  accordance  with  experi- 
ence. "  On  philosophical  grounds,"  he  was 
wont  to  say,  when  facts  and  theory  thus  con- 
fronted each  other,  "we  must  so  accept  it." 
Oken  was  extremely  friendly  with  the  stu- 
dents, and  Agassiz,  Braun,  and  Schimper  (who 
joined  them  at  Munich)  passed  an  evening 


54  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

once  a  week  at  his  house,  where  they  listened 
to  scientific  papers  or  discussed  scientific  mat- 
ters, over  a  pipe  and  a  glass  of  beer.  They 
also  met  once  a  week  to  drink  tea  at  the 
house  of  Professor  von  Martius,  where,  in 
like  manner,  the  conversation  turned  upon 
scientific  subjects,  unless  something  interest- 
ing in  general  events  gave  it  a  different  turn. 
Still  more  beloved  was  Dollinger,  whose  char- 
acter they  greatly  esteemed  and  admired  while 
they  delighted  in  his  instruction.  Not  only 
did  they  go  to  him  daily,  but  he  also  came 
often  to  see  them,  bringing  botanical  speci- 
mens to  Braun,  or  looking  in  upon  Agassiz's 
breeding  experiments,  in  which  he  took  the 
liveliest  interest,  being  always  ready  with  ad- 
vice or  practical  aid.  The  fact  that  Agassiz 
and  Braun  had  their  room  in  his  house  made 
intercourse  with  him  especially  easy.  This 
room  became  the  rendezvous  of  all  the  as- 
piring, active  spirits  among  the  young  natural- 
ists at  Munich,  and  was  known  by  the  name 
of  "  The  Little  Academy."  Schimper,  no 
less  than  the  other  two,  contributed  to  the 
vivid,  enthusiastic  intellectual  life,  which  char- 
acterized their  meetings.  Not  so  happy  as 
Agassiz  and  Braun  in  his  later  experience, 
the  promise  of  his  youth  was  equally  brilliant ; 


DAILY  LIFE  AT   THE   UNIVERSITY.        55 

and  those  who  knew  him  in  those  early  days 
remember  his  charm  of  mind  and  manner 
with  delight.  The  friends  gave  lectures  in 
turn  on  various  subjects,  especially  on  modes 
of  development  in  plants  and  animals.  These 
lectures  were  attended  not  only  by  students^ 
but  often  by  the  professors. 

Among  Agassiz's  intimate  friends  in  Mu- 
nich, beside  those  already  mentioned,  was  Mi- 
chahelles,  the  distinguished  young  zoologist 
and  physician,  whose  early  death  in  Greece, 
where  he  went  to  practice  medicine,  was  so 
much  regretted.  Like  Agassiz,  he  was  wont 
to  turn  his  room  into  a  menagerie,  where  he 
kept  turtles  and  other  animals,  brought  home, 
for  the  most  part,  from  his  journeys  in  Italy 
and  elsewhere.  Mahir,  whose  name  occurs 
often  in  the  letters  of  this  period,  was  an- 
other college  friend  and  fellow-student,  though 
seemingly  Agassiz's  senior  in  standing,  if  not 
in  years,  for  he  gave  him  private  instruction 
in  mathematics,  and  also  assisted  him  in  his 
medical  studies. 

TO    HIS    SISTER    CECILS. 

MUNICH,  November  20,  1827. 

...  I  will  tell  you  in  detail  how  my  tune 
is  spent,  so  that  when  you  think  of  me  you 


56  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

may  know  where  I  am  and  what  I  am  do- 
ing. In  the  morning  from  seven  to  nine  I 
am  at  the  Hospital.  From  nine  to  eleven  I 
go  to  the  Library,  where  I  usually  work  at 
that  time  instead  of  going  home.  From 
eleven  till  one  o'clock  I  have  lectures,  after 
which  I  dine,  sometimes  at  one  place,  some- 
times at  another,  for  here  every  one,  that  is, 
every  foreigner,  takes  his  meals  in  the  caf£s, 
paying  for  the  dinner  on  the  spot,  so  that  he 
is  not  obliged  to  go  always  to  the  same  place. 
In  the  afternoon  I  have  other  lectures  on 
various  subjects,  according  to  the  days,  from 
two  or  three  till  five  o'clock.  These  ended, 
I  take  a  walk  although  it  is  then  dark.  The 
environs  of  Munich  are  covered  with  snow, 
and  the  people  have  been  going  about  in 
sleighs  these  three  weeks.  When  I  am  frozen 
through  I  come  home,  and  set  to  work  to  re- 
view my  lectures  of  the  day,  or  I  write  and 
read  till  eight  or  nine  o'clock.  Then  I  go 
to  my  cafe  for  supper.  After  supper  I  am 
glad  to  return  to  the  house  and  go  to  bed. 

This  is  the  course  of  my  daily  life,  with 
the  single  exception  that  sometimes  Braun 
and  I  pass  an  evening  with  some  professor, 
discussing  with  all  our  might  and  main  sub- 
jects of  which  we  often  know  nothing ;  this 


LETTER    TO  HIS  BROTHER.  57 

does  not,  however,  lessen  the  animation  of  the 
talk.  More  often,  these  gentlemen  tell  us  of 
their  travels,  etc.  I  enjoy  especially  our  visits 
to  M.  Martius,  because  he  talks  to  us  of  his 
journey  to  Brazil,  from  which  he  returned 
some  years  ago,  bringing  magnificent  collec- 
tions, which  he  shows  us  whenever  we  call 
upon  him.  Friday  is  market  day  here,  and  I 
never  miss  going  to  see  the  fishes  to  increase 
my  collection.  I  have  already  obtained  sev- 
eral not  to  be  found  in  Switzerland ;  and  even 
in  my  short  stay  here  I  have  had  the  good 
fortune  to  discover  a  new  species,  of  which 
I  have  made  a  very  exact  description,  to  be 
printed  in  some  journal  of  natural  history. 
Were  my  dear  Cecile  here,  I  should  have 
begged  her  to  draw  it  nicely  for  me.  That 
would  have  been  pleasant  indeed.  Now  I 
must  ask  a  stranger  to  do  it,  and  it  will  have 
by  no  means  the  same  value  in  my  eyes.  .  .  . 

TO   HIS    BROTHER   AUGUSTE. 

MUNICH,  December  26, 1827. 

.  .  .  After  my  long  fast  from  news  of  you, 
your  letter  made  me  very  happy.  I  was 
dull  besides,  and  needed  something  to  cheer 
me.  .  .  .  Since  my  talk  about  natural  history 
does  not  bore  you,  I  want  to  tell  you  various 


58  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

other  things  about  it,  and  also  to  ask  you  to 
do  me  a  favor.  I  have  stuffed  a  superb  otter 
lately ;  next  week  I  shall  receive  a  beaver,  and 
I  have  exchanged  all  my  little  toads  from 
Neuchatel  for  reptiles  from  Brazil  and  Java. 
One  of  our  professors  here,  who  is  publishing 
a  natural  history  of  reptiles,  will  introduce  in 
his  work  my  description  of  that  species,  and 
my  observations  upon  it.  He  has  already  had 
lithographed  those  drawings  of  eggs  that 
Cecile  made  for  me,  as  well  as  the  colored 
drawings  made  for  me  by  Braun's  sister  when 
I  was  at  Carlsruhe.  My  collection  of  fishes 
is  also  much  increased,  but  I  have  no  dupli- 
cates left  of  the  species  I  brought  with  me. 
I  have  exchanged  them  all.  I  should  there- 
fore be  greatly  obliged  if  you  would  get  me 
some  more  of  the  same.  I  will  tell  you  what 
kinds  I  want,  and  how  you  are  to  forward 
them.  I  have  still  at  Cudrefin  several  jars  of 
thick  green  glass.  When  you  go  there  take 
them  away  with  you,  fill  them  with  alcohol, 
and  put  into  them  as  many  of  these  fishes  as. 
you  can  find  for  me.  Put  something  between 
every  two  specimens,  to  prevent  them  from 
rubbing  against  each  other ;  pack  them  in  a 
little  box  wrapped  in  hay,  and  send  them 
either  by  a  good  opportunity  or  in  the  least 


LETTER   TO  HIS  BROTHER.  59 

expensive  way.  The  kinds  I  want  are  [here 
follows  the  list].  ...  It  will  interest  you  to 
know  that  I  am  working  with  a  young  Dr. 
Born  upon  an  anatomy  and  natural  history 
of  the  fresh-water  fishes  of  Europe.  We  have 
already  gathered  a  great  deal  of  material,  and 
I  think  by  the  spring,  or  in  the  course  of 
the  summer,  we  shall  be  able  to  publish  the 
first  number.  This  will  bring  in  a  little  ready 
money  for  a  short  journey  in  the  vacation. 

I  earnestly  advise  you  to  while  away  your 
leisure  hours  with  study.  Read  much,  but 
only  good  and  useful  books.  I  promised  to 
send  you  something ;  do  not  think,  because  I 
have  not  done  so  yet,  that  I  have  forgotten 
it.  On  the  contrary,  the  difficulty  of  choos- 
ing is  the  cause  of  the  delay ;  but  I  will 
make  farther  inquiry  as  to  what  will  suit 
you  best  and  you  shall  have  my  list.  Mean- 
time remember  to  read  Say,  and  if  you  have 
not  already  begun  it,  do  not  put  it  off.  Re- 
member that  statistical  and  political  knowl- 
edge alone  distinguishes  the  true  merchant 
from  the  mere  tradesman,  and  guides  him  in 
his  undertakings.  ...  A  merchant  familiar 
with  the  products  of  a  country,  its  resources, 
its  commercial  and  political  relations  with 
other  countries,  is  much  less  likely  to  enter 


60  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

into  speculations  based  on  false  ideas,  and 
therefore  of  doubtful  issue.  Write  me  about 
what  you  are  reading  and  about  your  plans 
and  projects,  for  I  can  hardly  believe  that  any 
one  could  exist  without  forming  them :  I,  at 
least,  could  not.  .  .  . 

The  last  line  of  this  letter  betrays  the  rest- 
less spirit  of  adventure  growing  out  of  the 
desire  for  larger  fields  of  activity  and  re- 
search. Tranquilized  for  a  while  in  the  new 
and  more  satisfying  intellectual  life  of  Munich, 
it  stirred  afresh  from  time  to  time,  not  with- 
out arousing  anxiety  in  friends  at  home,  as 
we  shall  see.  The  letter  to  which  the  follow- 
ing is  an  answer  has  not  been  found. 


FROM    HIS   MOTHER. 


ORBE,  January  8,  1828. 

.  .  .  Your  letter  reached  me  at  Cudrefin, 
where  I  have  been  passing  ten  days.  With 
what  pleasure  I  received  it,  —  and  yet  I  read 
it  with  a  certain  sadness  too,  for  there  was 
something  of  ennui,  I  might  say  of  discon- 
tent, in  the  tone.  .  .  .  Believe  me,  my  dear 
Louis,  your  attitude  is  a  wrong  one ;  you  see 
everything  in  shadow.  Consider  that  you  are 
exactly  in  the  position  you  have  chosen  for 


CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  MOTHER.     61 

yourself;  we  have  in  no   way  opposed  your 
plans.      We  have,   on  the  contrary,   entered 
into  them  with  readiness,  saying  amen  to  your 
proposals,   only    insisting  upon    a    profession 
that  would  make  us  easy  about  your  future, 
persuaded  as  we  are  that  you  have  too  much 
energy  and  uprightness   not   to    wish  to  fill 
honorably  your  place  in  society.     You  left  us 
a  few  months  ago  with  the  assurance  that  two 
years  would   more  than  suffice   to    complete 
your  medical  studies.     You  chose  the  univer- 
sity which  offered,  as  you  thought,  the  most 
ample  means  to  reach  your  end ;  and  now, 
how  is  it  that  you  look  forward  only  with  dis- 
taste to  the  practice  of  medicine  ?     Have  you 
reflected    seriously   before    setting  aside    this 
profession  ?      Indeed,   we   cannot   consent  to 
such  a  step.     You  would  lose  ground  in  our 
opinion,  in  that  of  your  family,  and  in  that  of 
the  public.     You  would  pass  for  an  inconsid- 
erate, fickle  young  fellow,   and  the   slightest 
stain  on  your  reputation  would  be  a  mortal 
blow  to  us.     There  is  one  way  of  reconciling 
all  difficulties,  —  the  only  one  in  my  opinion. 
Complete  your   studies  with    all   the  zeal   of 
which  you  are  capable,  and  then,  if  you  have 
still  the   same  inclination,  go   on  with  your 
natural  history  ;  give  yourself  wholly  up  to  it 


62  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

should  that  be  your  wish.  Having  two  strings 
to  your  bow,  you  will  have  the  greater  facil- 
ity for  establishing  yourself.  Such  is  your 
father's  way  of  thinking  as  well  as  mine.  .  .  . 
Nor  are  you  made  to  live  alone,  my  child. 
In  a  home  only  is  true  happiness  to  be  found ; 
there  you  can  settle  yourself  to  your  liking. 
The  sooner  you  have  finished  your  studies,  the 
sooner  you  can  put  up  your  tent,  catch  your 
blue  butterfly,  and  metamorphose  her  into  a 
loving  housewife.  Of  course  you  will  not 
gather  roses  without  thorns;  life  consists  of 
pains  and  pleasures  everywhere.  To  do  all 
the  good  you  can  to  your  fellow-beings,  to 
have  a  pure  conscience,  to  gain  an  honorable 
livelihood,  to  procure  for  yourself  by  work  a 
little  ease,  to  make  those  around  you  happy, 
—  that  is  true  happiness ;  all  the  rest  but 
mere  accessories  and  chimeras. 


TO    HIS    MOTHER. 


MUNICH,  February  3,  1828. 

.  .  .  You  know  well  to  whom  you  speak, 
dear  mother,  and  how  you  must  bait  your 
hook  in  order  that  the  fish  may  rise.  When 
you  paint  it,  I  see  nothing  above  domestic 
happiness,  and  am  convinced  that  the  height 
of  felicity  is  to  be  found  in  the  bosom  of  youi 


CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  MOTHER.    63 

family,  surrounded  by  little  marmots  to  love 
and  caress  you.  I  hope,  too,  to  enjoy  this  hap- 
piness in  time.  .  .  .  But  the  man  of  letters 
should  seek  repose  only  when  he  has  deserved 
it  by  his  toil,  for  if  once  he  anchor  himself, 
farewell  to  energy  and  liberty,  by  which  alone 
great  minds  are  fostered.  Therefore  I  have 
said  to  myself,  that  I  would  remain  unmarried 
till  my  work  should  assure  me  a  peaceful  and 
happy  future.  A  young  man  has  too  much 
vigor  to  bear  confinement  so  soon ;  he  gives 
up  many  pleasures  which  he  might  have  had, 
and  does  not  appreciate  at  their  just  value 
those  which  he  has.  As  it  is  said  that  the 
vaurien  must  precede  the  bon  sujet,  so  I  be- 
lieve that  for  the  full  enjoyment  of  sedentary 
life  one  must  have  played  the  vagabond  for 
a  while. 

This  brings  me  to  the  subject  of  my  last 
letter.  It  seems  that  you  have  misunderstood 
me,  for  your  answer  grants  me  after  all  just 
what  I  ask.  You  think  that  I  wish  to  re- 
nounce entirely  the  study  of  medicine?  On 
the  contrary,  the  idea  has  never  occurred  to 
me,  and,  according  to  my  promise,  you  shall 
have  one  of  these  days  a  doctor  of  medicine 
as  a  son.  What  repels  me  is  the  thought  of 
practicing  medicine  for  a  livelihood,  and  here 


64  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

you  give  me  free  rein  just  where  I  wanted  it. 
That  is,  you  consent  that  I  should  devote  my- 
self wholly  to  the  natural  sciences  should  this 
career  offer  me,  as  I  hope  it  may,  a  more  favor- 
able prospect.  It  requires,  for  instance,  but 
two  or  three  years  to  go  around  the  world  at 
government  expense.  I  will  levy  contribu- 
tions on  all  my  senses  that  not  a  single  chance 
may  escape  me  for  making  interesting  ob- 
servations and  fine  collections,  so  that  I  also 
may  be  ranked  among  those  who  have  en- 
larged the  boundaries  of  science.  With  that 
my  future  is  secured,  and  I  shall  return  con- 
tent and  disposed  to  do  all  that  you  wish. 
Even  then,  if  medicine  had  gained  greater  at- 
traction for  me,  there  would  still  be  time  to 
begin  the  practice  of  it.  It  seems  to  me  there 
is  nothing  impracticable  in  this  plan.  I  beg 
you  to  think  of  it,  and  to  talk  it  over  with 
papa  and  with  my  uncle  at  Lausanne.  ...  I 
am  perfectly  well  and  as  happy  as  possible, 
for  I  feed  in  clover  here  on  my  favorite  stud- 
ies, with  every  facility  at  my  command.  If 
you  thought  my  New  Year's  letter  depressed, 
it  was  only  a  momentary  gloom  due  to  the 
memories  awakened  by  the  day.  .  .  . 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  FATHER.  65 


FROM    HIS    FATHER. 


ORBE,  February  21,  1828. 

Your  mother's  last  letter,  my  dear  Louis, 
was  in  answer  to  one  from  you  which  crossed 
it  on  the  way,  and  gave  us,  so  far  as  your 
health  and  contentment  are  concerned,  great 
satisfaction.  Yet  our  gratification  lacks  some- 
thing; it  would  be  more  complete  had  you 
not  a  mania  for  rushing  full  gallop  into  the 
future.  I  have  often  reproved  you  for  this, 
and  you  would  fare  better  did  you  pay  more 
attention  to  my  reproof.  If  it  be  an  incur- 
able malady  with  you,  at  all  events  do  not 
force  your  parents  to  share  it.  If  it  be  ab- 
solutely essential  to  your  happiness  that  you 
should  break  the  ice  of  the  two  poles  in  order 
to  find  the  hairs  of  a  mammoth,  or  that  you 
should  dry  your  shirt  in  the  sun  of  the  trop- 
ics, at  least  wait  till  your  trunk  is  packed  and 
your  passports  are  signed  before  you  talk  with 
us  about  it.  Begin  by  reaching  your  first 
aim,  a  physician's  and  surgeon's  diploma.  I 
will  not  for  the  present  hear  of  anything  else, 
and  that  is  more  than  enough.  Talk  to  us, 
then  in  your  letters,  of  your  friends,  of  your 
personal  life,  of  your  wants  (which  I  am  al- 
ways ready  to  satisfy),  of  your  pleasures,  of 

VOL.   I.  5 


66  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

your  feeling  for  us,  but  do  not  put  yourself 
out  of  our  reach  with  your  philosophical  syl- 
logisms. My  own  philosophy  is  to  fulfill  my 
duties  in  my  sphere,  and  even  that  gives  me 
more  than  I  can  do.  ... 

The  Vaudois  "  Society  of  Public  Utility  " 
has  just  announced  an  altogether  new  project, 
that  of  establishing  popular  libraries.  A  com- 
mittee consisting  of  eight  members,  of  whom 
I  have  the  honor  to  be  one,  is  nominated  un- 
der the  presidency  of  M.  Delessert  for  the 
execution  of  this  scheme.  What  do  you 
think  of  the  idea  ?  To  me  it  seems  a  delicate 
matter.  I  should  say  that  before  we  insist 
upon  making  people  read  we  must  begin  by 
preparing  them  to  read  usefully  ?  .  .  . 

TO   HIS   FATHER. 

MUNICH,  March  3,  1828. 

.  .  .  What  you  tell  me  of  the  "  Society  of 
Public  Utility"  has  aroused  in  me  a  throng  of 
ideas,  about  which  I  will  write  you  when  they 
are  a  little  more  mature.  Meanwhile,  please 
tell  me:  1.  What  is  this  Society?  2.  Of 
what  persons  is  it  composed  ?  3.  What  is  its 
principal  aim  ?  4.  What  are  the  popular  li- 
braries to  contain,  and  for  what  class  are  they 
intended  ?  I  believe  this  project  may  be  of 


LETTER    TO  HIS  FATHER.  67 

the  greatest  service  to  our  people,  and  it  is  on 
this  account  that  I  desire  farther  details  that 
I  may  think  it  over  carefully.  Tell  me,  also, 
in  what  way  you  propose  to  distribute  your 
libraries  at  small  expense,  and  how  large  they 
are  to  be.  ... 

I  could  not  be  more  satisfied  than  I  am  with 
my  stay  here.  I  lead  a  monotonous  but  an 
exceedingly  pleasant  life,  withdrawn  from  the 
crowd  of  students  and  seeing  them  but  little. 
When  our  lectures  are  over  we  meet  in  the 
evening  at  Braun's  room  or  mine,  with  three 
or  four  intimate  acquaintances,  and  talk  of 
scientific  matters,  each  one  in  his  turn  present- 
ing a  subject  which  is  first  developed  by  him, 
and  then  discussed  by  all.  These  exercises 
are  very  instructive.  As  my  share,  I  have 
begun  to  give  a  course  of  natural  history,  or 
rather  of  pure  zoology.  Braun  talks  to  us  of 
botany,  and  another  of  our  company,  Mahir, 
who  is  an  excellent  fellow,  teaches  us  mathe- 
matics and  physics  in  his  turn.  In  two 
months  our  friend  Schimper,  whom  we  left  at 
Heidelberg,  will  join  us,  and  he  will  then  be 
our  professor  of  philosophy.  Thus  we  shall 
form  a  little  university,  instructing  each  other 
and  at  the  same  time  learning  what  we  teach 
more  thoroughly,  because  we  shall  be  obliged 


68  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

to  demonstrate  it.  Each  session  lasts  two  or 
three  hours,  during  which  the  professor  in 
charge  retails  his  merchandise  without  aid  of 
notes  or  book.  You  can  imagine  how  useful 
this  must  be  in  preparing  us  to  speak  in  public 
and  with  coherence ;  the  experience  is  the 
more  important,  since  we  all  desire  nothing  so 
much  as  sooner  or  later  to  become  professors 
in  very  truth,  after  having  played  at  professor 
in  the  university. 

This  brings  me  naturally  to  my  projects 
again.  Your  letter  made  me  feel  so  keenly 
the  anxiety  I  had  caused  you  by  my  passion 
for  travel,  that  I  will  not  recur  to  it ;  but  as 
my  object  was  to  make  in  that  way  a  name 
that  would  win  for  me  a  professorship,  I  ven- 
ture upon  another  proposition.  If  during  the 
course  of  my  studies  I  succeed  in  making  my- 
self known  by  a  work  of  distinction,  will  you 
pot  then  consent  that  I  shall  study,  at  least 
during  one  year,  the  natural  sciences  alone, 
and  then  accept  a  professorship  of  natural  his- 
tory, with  the  understanding  that  in  the  first 
place,  and  in  the  time  agreed  upon,  I  shall 
take  my  Doctor's  degree  ?  This  is,  indeed, 
essential  to  my  obtaining  what  I  wish,  at  least 
in  Germany.  You  will  object  that,  before 
thinking  of  anything  beyond,  I  ought  first  to 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  FATHER.  69 

fulfill  the  condition.  But  let  me  say  that  the 
more  clearly  a  man  sees  the  road  before  him, 
the  less  likely  he  is  to  lose  his  way  or  take  the 
wrong  turn,  —  the  better  he  can  divide  his 
stages  and  his  resting-places.  .  .  . 

FROM   HIS    FATHER. 

ORBE,  March  25,  1828. 

...  I  have  had  a  long  talk  about  you 
with  your  uncle.  He  does  not  at  all  disap- 
prove of  your  letters,  of  which  I  told  him  the 
contents.  He  only  insists,  as  we  do,  on  the 
necessity  of  a  settled  profession  as  absolutely 
essential  to  your  financial  position.  Indeed, 
the  natural  sciences,  however  sublime  and  at- 
tractive, offer  nothing  certain  in  the  future. 
They  may,  no  doubt,  be  your  golden  bridge, 
or  you  may,  thanks  to  them,  soar  very  high, 
but  —  modern  Icarus  —  may  not  also  some 
adverse  fortune,  an  unexpected  loss  of  popu- 
larity, or,  perhaps,  some  revolution  fatal  to 
your  philosophy,  bring  you  down  with  a  som- 
ersault, and  then  you  would  not  be  sorry  to 
find  in  your  quiver  the  means  of  gaining 
your  bread.  Agreed  that  you  have  now  an 
invincible  repugnance  to  the  practice  of  med- 
icine, it  is  evident  from  your  last  two  letters 
that  you  would  have  no  less  objection  to  any 


70  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

other  profession  by  which  money  is  to  be 
made,  and,  besides,  it  is  too  late  to  make  an- 
other selection.  This  being  so,  we  will  come 
to  an  understanding  in  one  word :  Let  the 
sciences  be  the  balloon  in  which  you  pre- 
pare to  travel  through  higher  regions,  but  let 
medicine  and  surgery  be  your  parachutes.  I 
think,  my  dear  Louis,  you  cannot  object  to 
this  way  of  looking  at  the  question  and  decid- 
ing it.  In  making  my  respects  to  the  pro- 
fessor of  zoology,  I  have  the  pleasure  to  tell 
him  that  his  uncle  was  delighted  with  his  way 
of  passing  his  evenings,  and  congratulates  him 
with  all  his  heart  on  his  choice  of  a  recreation. 
Enough  of  this  chapter.  I  close  it  here,  wish- 
ing you  most  heartily  courage,  health,  success, 
and,  above  all,  contentment.  ... 

Upon  this  follows  the  answer  to  Louis's  re- 
quest for  details  about  the  "  Society  of  Public 
Utility."  It  shows  the  intimate  exchange  of 
thought  between  father  and  son  on  educa- 
tional subjects,  but  it  is  of  too  local  an  inter- 
est for  reproduction  here. 

The  Easter  vacation  was  devoted  to  a  short 
journey,  some  account  of  which  will  be  found 
in  the  next  letter.  The  traveling  party  con- 
sisted of  Agassiz,  Braun,  and  Schimper,  with 


LETTER   TO  HIS  FATHER.  71 

two  other  students,  who  did  not,  however,  re- 
main with  them  during  the  whole  trip. 


TO   HIS   FATHER. 


MUNICH,  May  15,  1828. 

.  .  .  Pleasant  as  my  Easter  journey  was,  I 
will  give  you  but  a  brief  account  of  it,  for 
my  enjoyment  was  so  connected  with  my  spe- 
cial studies  that  the  details  would  only  be  tire- 
some to  you.  You  know  who  were  my  travel- 
ing companions,  so  I  have  only  to  tell  you  of 
our  adventures,  assuredly  not  those  of  knights 
errant  or  troubadours.  Could  these  gentry 
have  been  resuscitated,  and  have  seen  us  start- 
ing forth  in  blouses,  with  bags  or  botanical 
boxes  at  our  backs  and  butterfly-nets  in  our 
hands,  instead  of  lance  and  buckler,  they 
could  hardly  have  failed  to  look  down  upon 
us  with  pity  from  the  height  of  their  grand- 
eur. 

The  first  day  brought  us  to  Landshut, 
where  was  formerly  the  university  till  it  was 
transferred,  ten  years  ago,  to  Munich.  We 
had  the  pleasure  of  finding  along  our  road 
most  of  the  early  spring  plants.  The  weather 
was  magnificent,  and  nature  seemed  to  smile 
upon  her  votaries.  .  .  .  We  stopped  on  the 
way  but  one  day,  at  Ratisbon,  to  visit  some 


72  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

relations  of  Braun's,  with  whom  we  promised 
to  spend  several  days  on  our  return.  Learn- 
ing on  our  arrival  at  Nuremberg  that  the 
Dlirer  festival,  which  had  been  our  chief  in- 
ducement for  this  journey,  would  not  take 
place  under  eight  or  ten  days,  we  decided  to 
pass  the  intervening  time  at  Erlangen,  the 
seat,  as  you  know,  of  a  university.  I  do  not 
know  if  I  have  already  told  you  that  among 
German  students  the  exercise  of  hospitality 
toward  those  who  exchange  visits  from  one 
university  to  another  is  a  sacred  custom.  It 
gives  offense,  or  is  at  least  looked  upon  as 
a  mark  of  pride  and  disdain,  if  you  do  not 
avail  yourself  of  this.  We  therefore  went  to 
one  of  the  cafes  de  reunion,  and  received  at 
once  our  tickets  for  lodgings.  We  passed  six 
days  at  Erlangen  most  agreeably,  making  a  bo- 
tanical excursion  every  day.  We  also  called 
upon  the  professors  of  botany  and  zoology, 
whom  we  had  already  seen  at  Munich,  and  by 
whom  we  were  most  cordially  received.  The 
professor  of  botany,  M.  Koch,  invited  us  to 
a  very  excellent  dinner,  and  gave  us  many  rare 
plants  not  in  our  possession  before,  while  M. 
Wagner  was  kind  enough  to  show  us  in  detail 
the  Museum  and  the  Library. 
At  last  came  the  day  appointed  for  the 


LETTER   TO  HIS  FATHER.  73 

third  centennial  festival  of  Durer.  Every- 
thing was  so  arranged  as  to  make  it  very  bril- 
liant, and  the  weather  was  most  favorable.  I 
doubt  if  ever  before  were  collected  so  many 
painters  in  the  same  place.  They  gathered, 
as  if  to  vie  with  each  other,  from  all  nations, 
Russians,  Italians,  French,  Germans,  etc.  Be- 
side the  pupils  of  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts 
at  Munich,  I  think  that  every  soul  who  could 
paint,  were  it  only  the  smallest  sketch,  was 
there  to  pay  homage  to  the  great  master.  All 
went  in  procession  to  the  place  where  the 
monument  is  to  be  raised,  and  the  magistrates 
of  the  city  laid  the  first  stones  of  the  pedestal. 
To  my  amusement  they  cemented  these  first 
stones  with  a  mortar  which  was  served  in 
great  silver  platters,  and  made  of  fine  pounded 
porcelain  mixed  with  champagne.  In  the 
evening  all  the  streets  were  illuminated ;  there 
were  balls,  concerts,  and  plays,  so  that  we 
must  have  been  doubled  or  quadrupled  to  see 
everything.  We  stayed  some  days  longer  at 
Nuremberg  to  visit  the  other  curiosities  of 
the  city,  especially  its  beautiful  churches,  its 
manufactories,  etc.,  and  then  started  on  our 
return  to  Ratisbon. 


CHAPTER  HI. 

1828-1829:  ^ET.  21-22. 

First  Important  Work  in  Natural  History.  —  Spix's  Brazilian 
Fishes.  —  Second  Vacation  Trip.  —  Sketch  of  Work  during 
University  Year.  —  Extracts  from  the  Journal  of  Mr. 
Dinkel.  —  Home  Letters.  —  Hope  of  joining  Humboldt's 
Asiatic  Expedition.  —  Diploma  of  Philosophy.  —  Comple- 
tion of  First  Part  of  the  Spix  Fishes.  —  Letter  concerning 
it  from  Cuvier. 

IT  was  not  without  a  definite  purpose  that 
Agassiz  had  written  to  his  father  some  weeks 
before,  "  Should  I  during  the  course  of  my 
studies  succeed  in  making  myself  known  by  a 
distinguished  work,  would  you  not  then  con- 
sent that  I  should  study  for  one  year  the 
natural  sciences  alone?"  Unknown  to  his 
parents,  for  whom  he  hoped  to  prepare  a  de- 
lightful surprise,  Agassiz  had  actually  been 
engaged  for  months  on  the  first  work  which 
gave  him  distinction  in  the  scientific  world ; 
namely,  a  description  of  the  Brazilian  fishes 
brought  home  by  Martius  and  Spix  from  their 
celebrated  journey  in  Brazil.  This  was  the 
secret  to  which  allusion  is  made  in  the  next 


LETTER    TO  HIS  BROTHER.  75 

letter.  To  his  disappointment  an  accident 
brought  his  undertaking  to  the  knowledge  of 
his  father  and  mother  before  it  was  completed. 
He  always  had  a  boyish  regret  that  his  little 
plot  had  been  betrayed  before  the  moment  for 
the  denouement  arrived.  The  book  was  writ- 
ten in  Latin  and  dedicated  to  Cuvier.1 

TO   HIS   BROTHER. 

MUNICH,  July  27,  1828. 

.  .  .  Various  things  which  I  have  begun 
keep  me  a  prisoner  here.  Probably  I  shall 
not  stir  during  the  vacation,  and  shall  even 
give  up  the  little  trip  in  the  Tyrol,  which  I 
had  thought  of  making  as  a  rest  from  occu- 
pations that  bind  me  very  closely  at  present, 
but  from  which  I  hope  to  free  myself  in  the 
course  of  the  holidays.  Don't  be  angry  with 
me  for  not  telling  you  at  once  what  they  are. 
When  you  know,  I  hope  to  be  forgiven  for 
keeping  you  so  long  in  the  dark.  I  have 
kept  it  a  secret  from  papa  too,  though  in  his 
last  letter  he  asks  me  what  is  my  especial 
work  just  now.  A  few  months  more  of  pa- 
tience, and  I  will  give  you  a  strict  account  of 

1  Selecta  genera  et  species  piscium  quos  collegit  et  pingendos 
curavit  Dr.  J.  W.  de  Spix.  Digessit,  descripsit  et  observa- 
tionibus  illustravit  Dr.  L.  Agassiz. 


76  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

my  time  since  I  came  here,  and  then  I  am 
sure  you  will  be  satisfied  with  me.  I  only 
wish  to  guard  against  one  thing  :  do  not  take 
it  into  your  head  that  I  am  about  to  don  the 
fool's  cap  suddenly  and  surprise  you  with  a 
Doctor's  degree ;  that  would  be  going  a  lit- 
tle too  fast,  nor  do  I  think  of  it  yet.  ...  I 
want  to  remind  you  not  to  let  the  summer 
pass  without  getting  me  fishes  according  to 
the  list  in  my  last  letter,  which  I  hope  you 
have  not  mislaid.  You  would  give  me  great 
pleasure  by  sending  them  as  soon  as  possible. 
Let  me  tell  you  why.  M.  Cuvier  has  an- 
nounced the  publication  of  a  complete  work 
on  all  the  known  fishes,  and  in  the  prospectus 
he  calls  on  such  naturalists  as  occupy  them- 
selves with  ichthyology  to  send  him  the  fishes 
of  the  country  where  they  live ;  he  mentions 
those  who  have  already  sent  him  collections, 
and  promises  duplicates  from  the  Paris  Mu- 
seum to  those  who  will  send  him  more.  He 
names  the  countries  also  from  which  he  has 
received  contributions,  and  regrets  that  he  has 
nothing  from  Bavaria.  Now  I  possess  sev- 
eral specimens  of  all  the  native  species,  and 
have  even  discovered  some  ten  not  hitherto 
known  to  occur  here,  beside  one  completely 
new  to  science,  which  I  have  named  Cyprinus 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  BROTHER.     77 

uranoscopus  on  account  of  the  position  of  the 
eyes,  placed  on  the  top  instead  of  the  sides  of 
the  head,  —  otherwise  very  like  the  gudgeon. 
I  have  therefore  thought  I  could  not  better 
launch  myself  in  the  scientific  world  than  by 
sending  Cuvier  my  fishes  with  the  observa- 
tions I  have  made  on  their  natural  history. 
To  these  I  should  like  to  add  such  rare  Swiss 
species  as  you  can  procure  for  me.  So  do  not 
fail. 

FROM    HIS   BROTHER. 

NEUCHATEL,  August  25, 1828. 
...  I  received  in  good  time,  and  with  in- 
finite delight,  your  pleasant  letter  of  July 
27th.  Its  mysteries  have  however  been  un- 
veiled by  Dr.  Schinz,  who  came  to  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Natural  History  Society  in  Lau- 
sanne, where  he  met  papa  and  my  uncle,  to 
whom  he  pronounced  the  most  solemn  eulo- 
giums  on  their  son  and  nephew,  telling  them 
at  the  same  time  what  was  chiefly  occupy- 
ing you  now.  I  congratulate  you,  my  dear 
brother,  but  I  confess  that  among  us  all  I 
am  the  least  surprised,  for  my  presentiments 
about  you  outrun  all  this,  and  I  hope  soon 
to  see  them  realized.  In  all  frankness  I  can 
assure  you  that  the  stoutest  antagonists  of 
your  natural  history  schemes  begin  to  come 


78  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

over  to  your  side.  Among  them  is  my  uncle 
here,  who  never  speaks  of  you  now  but  with 
enthusiasm.  What  more  can  be  said  ?  I  gave 
him  your  letter  to  read,  and  since  then  he  has 
asked  me  a  dozen  times  at  least  if  I  had  not 
forgotten  to  forward  the  remittance  you  asked 
for,  saying  that  I  must  not  delay  it.  The  truth 
is,  I  have  deferred  writing  till  the  last  mo- 
ment, because  I  have  not  succeeded  in  getting 
your  fishes,  and  have  always  been  hoping  that 
I  might  be. able  to  fulfill  your  commission.  I 
busied  myself  on  your  behalf  with  all  the  zeal 
and  industry  of  which  I  was  capable,  but 
quite  in  vain.  The  devil  seemed  to  be  in  it. 
The  season  of  Bondelles  was  over  two  months 
ago,  and  there  are  none  to  be  seen  ;  as  to 
trout,  I  don't  believe  one  has  been  eaten  in 
the  whole  town  for  six  weeks.  I  am  forever 
at  the  heels  of  the  fishermen,  promising  them 
double  and  treble  the  value  of  the  fish  I  want, 
but  they  all  tell  me  they  catch  nothing  except 
pike.  I  have  been  to  Cudrefin  for  lampreys, 
but  found  nothing.  Rodolphe 1  has  been  pad- 
dling in  the  brook  every  day  without  success. 
I  went  to  Sauge,  —  no  eels,  no  anything  but 
perch  and  a  few  little  cat-fish.  Two  mortal 
Sundays  did  I  spend,  rod  in  hand,  trying  to 
1  An  experienced  old  boatman. 


THE  SP1X  FISHES.  79 

catch  bream,  chubs,  etc.  I  did  get  a  few,  but 
they  were  not  worth  sending.  Now  it  is  all 
over  for  this  year,  and  we  may  as  well  put  on 
mourning  for  them ;  but  I  promise  you  that 
as  soon  as  the  spring  opens  I  will  go  to  work, 
and  you  shall  have  all  you  want.  If,  in  spite 
of  everything,  your  hopes  are  not  realized,  I 
shall  be  very  sorry,  but  rest  assured  that  it  is 
not  my  fault.  .  .  . 

TO   HIS   SISTER   CECILE. 

MUNICH,  October  29,  1828. 

...  I  have  never  written  you  about  what 
has  engrossed  me  so  deeply;  but  since  my 
secret  is  out,  I  ought  not  to  keep  silence 
longer.  That  you  may  understand  why  I 
have  entered  upon  such  a  work  I  will  go  back 
to  its  origin.  In  1817  the  King  of  Bavaria 
sent  two  naturalists,  M.  Martius  and  M.  Spix, 
on  an  exploring  expedition  to  Brazil.  Of 
M.  Martius,  with  whom  I  always  spend  my 
Wednesday  evenings,  I  have  often  spoken  to 
you.  In  1821  these  gentlemen  returned  to 
their  country  laden  with  new  discoveries,  which 
they  published  in  succession.  M.  Martius  is- 
sued colored  illustrations  of  all  the  unknown 
plants  he  had  collected  on  his  journey,  while 
M.  Spix  brought  out  several  folio  volumes 


80  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

on  the  monkeys,  birds,  and  reptiles  of  Brazil, 
the  animals  being  drawn  and  colored,  chiefly 
life-size,  by  able  artists.  It  had  been  his  in- 
tention to  give  a  complete  natural  history  of 
Brazil,  but  to  the  sorrow  of  all  naturalists 
he  died  in  1826.  M.  Martius,  desirous  to  see 
the  completion  of  the  work  which  his  travel- 
ing companion  had  begun,  engaged  a  profes- 
sor from  Erlangen  to  publish  the  shells,  and 
these  appeared  last  year.  When  I  came  to 
Munich  there  remained  only  the  fishes  and 
insects,  and  M.  Martius,  who  had  learned 
something  about  me  from  the  professors  to 
whom  I  was  known,  found  me  worthy  to  con- 
tinue the  work  of  Spix,  and  asked  me  to 
carry  on  the  natural  history  of  the  fishes. 
I  hesitated  for  a  long  time  to  accept  this 
honorable  offer,  fearing  that  the  occupation 
might  withdraw  me  too  much  from  my  stud- 
ies ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  opportunity 
for  laying  the  foundation  of  a  reputation 
by  a  large  undertaking  seemed  too  favor- 
able to  be  refused.  The  first  volume  is  al- 
ready finished,  and  the  printing  was  begun 
some  weeks  ago.  You  can  imagine  the  pleas- 
ure I  should  have  had  in  sending  it  to  our 
dear  father  and  mother  before  they  had 
heard  one  word  about  it,  or  knew  even  of 


FIRST  LITERARY  EFFORT.  81 

the  proposition.  But  I  hope  the  premature 
disclosure  of  my  secret  (indeed,  to  tell  the 
truth,  I  had  not  imposed  silence  on  M.  Schinz, 
not  dreaming  that  he  would  see  any  one  of 
the  family)  will  not  diminish  your  pleasure  in 
receiving  the  first  work  of  your  brother  Louis, 
which  I  hope  to  send  you  at  Easter.  Already 
forty  colored  folio  plates  are  completed.  Will 
it  not  seem  strange  when  the  largest  and  fin- 
est book  in  papa's  library  is  one  written  by 
his  Louis?  Will  it  not  be  as  good  as  to 
see  his  prescription  at  the  apothecary's?  It 
is  true  that  this  first  effort  will  bring  me  in 
but  little  ;  nothing  at  all,  in  fact,  because  M. 
de  Martius  has  assumed  all  the  expenses,  and 
will,  of  course,  receive  the  profits.  My  share 
will  be  a  few  copies  of  the  book,  and  these  I 
shall  give  to  the  friends  who  have  the  first 
claim. 

To  his  father  Agassiz  only  writes  of  his 
work  at  this  time :  "  I  have  been  very  busy 
this  summer,  and  I  can  tell  you  from  a  good 
source  (I  have  it  from  one  of  the  professors 
himself)  that  the  professors  whose  lectures  I 
have  attended  have  mentioned  me  more  than 
once,  as  one  of  the  most  assiduous  and  best 
informed  students  of  the  university;  saying 

VOL.  L  6 


82  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

also  that  I  deserved  distinction.  I  do  not  tell 
you  this  from  ostentation,  but  only  that  you 
may  not  think  I  lose  my  time,  even  though  I 
occupy  myself  chiefly  with  the  natural  sci- 
ences. I  hope  yet  to  prove  to  you  that  with 
a  brevet  of  Doctor  as  a  guarantee,  Natural 
History  may  be  a  man's  bread-winner  as  well 
as  the  delight  of  his  life."  .  .  . 

In  September  Agassiz  allowed  himself  a 
short  interruption  of  his  work.  The  next  let- 
ter gives  some  account  of  this  second  vacation 
trip. 

TO   HIS    PARENTS. 

MUNICH,  September  26,  1828. 

.  .  .  The  instruction  for  the  academic  year 
closed  at  the  end  of  August,  and  our  profes- 
sors had  hardly  completed  their  lectures  when 
I  began  my  Alpine  excursion.  Braun,  impa- 
tient to  leave  Munich,  had  already  started  the 
preceding  day,  promising  to  wait  for  me  on 
the  Salzburg  road  at  the  first  spot  which 
pleased  him  enough  for  a  halt.  That  I  might 
not  keep  him  waiting,  I  begged  a  friend  to 
drive  me  a  good  day's  journey,  thinking  to 
overtake  Braun  the  first  day  on  the  pleasant 
banks  of  the  Lake  of  Chiem.  My  traveling 
companions  were  the  younger  Schimper  [Wil- 


A   VACATION  TRIP.  83 

helm],  of  whom  I  have  spoken  to  you  (and 
who  made  a  botanical  journey  in  the  south  of 
France  and  the  Pyrenees  two  years  ago),  and 
Mahir,  who  drove  us,  with  whom  I  am  very 
intimate ;  he  is  a  medical  student,  and  also 
a  very  enthusiastic  physicist.  He  gave  me 
private  lessons  in  mathematics  all  winter,  and 
was  a  member  of  our  philomathic  meetings. 
Braun  had  not  set  out  alone  either,  and  his 
two  traveling  companions  were  also  friends 
of  ours.  One  was  Trettenbacher,  a  medical  stu- 
dent greatly  given  to  sophisms  and  logic,  but 
allowing  himself  to  be  beaten  in  argument 
with  the  utmost  good  nature,  though  always 
believing  himself  in  the  right ;  a  thoroughly 
good  fellow  with  all  that,  and  a  great  connois- 
seur of  antiquities.  The  other  was  a  young 
student,  More,  from  the  ci-devant  department 
of  Mt.  Tonnerre,  who  devotes  himself  en- 
tirely to  the  natural  sciences,  and  has  chosen 
the  career  of  traveling  naturalist.  You  can 
easily  imagine  that  this  attracts  me  to  him, 
but  as  he  is  only  a  beginner  I  am,  as  it  were, 
his  mentor. 

On  the  morning  of  our  departure  the 
weather  was  magnificent.  Driving  briskly 
along  we  had  various  surmises  as  to  where 
we  should  probably  meet  our  traveling  com- 


84  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

panions,  not  doubting  that,  as  we  hoped  to 
reach  the  Lake  of  Chiem  the  same  day,  we 
should  come  across  them  the  day  following 
on  one  of  its  pretty  islands.  But  in  the  after- 
noon the  weather  changed,  and  we  were  forced 
to  seek  shelter  from  torrents  of  rain  at  Rosen- 
heim,  a  charming  town  on  the  banks  of  the 
Inn,  where  I  saw  for  the  first  time  this  river 
of  Helvetic  origin.  I  saluted  it  as  a  country- 
man of  mine,  and  wished  I  could  change  its 
course  and  send  it  back  laden  with  my  greet- 
ings. The  next  day  Mahir  drove  us  as  far 
as  the  shore  of  the  lake.  There  we  parted 
from  him,  and  took  a  boat  to  the  islands, 
where  we  were  much  disappointed  not  to  find 
Braun  and  his  companions.  We  thought  the 
bad  weather  of  the  day  before  (for  here  it 
had  rained  all  day)  might  have  obliged  them 
to  make  the  circuit  of  the  lake.  However,  in 
order  to  overtake  them  before  reaching  Salz- 
burg, we  kept  our  boatmen,  and  were  rowed 
across  to  the  opposite  shore  near  Grabenstadt, 
where  we  arrived  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  even- 
ing. In  the  afternoon  the  weather  had  cleared 
a  little,  and  the  view  was  beautiful  as  we 
pulled  away  from  the  islands  and  watched 
them  fade  in  the  twilight.  I  also  gathered 
much  interesting  information  about  the  in* 


A    VACATION   TRIP.  85 

habitants  of  the  waters  of  this  lake.  Among 
others,  I  was  much  pleased  to  find  a  cat-fish, 
taken  in  the  lake  by  one  of  the  island  fisher- 
men, and  also  a  kind  of  chub,  not  found  in 
Switzerland,  and  called  by  the  fishermen  here 
"  Our  Lady's  Fish,"  because  it  occurs  only  on 
the  shore  of  an  island  where  there  is  a  con- 
vent, the  nuns  of  which  esteem  it  a  great  del- 
icacy. 

The  third  day  we  reached  Traunstein,  where, 
although  it  was  Sunday,  there  was  a  great 
horse  fair.  We  looked  with  interest  at  the 
gay  Tyroleans,  with  the  cock-feathers  in  their 
pointed  hats,  singing  and  jodeling  in  the 
streets  with  their  sweethearts  on  their  arms. 
Every  now  and  then  they  let  fall  some  sar- 
castic comment  on  our  accoutrements,  which 
were  indeed  laughable  enough  to  these  peo- 
ple, who  had  never  seen  anything  beyond 
their  own  chalets,  and  for  whom  an  excursion 
from  their  mountains  to  a  fair  in  the  nearest 
town  is  a  journey.  It  was  noon  when  we 
stopped  at  Traunstein,  and  from  there  to  Salz- 
burg is  but  five  leagues.  Before  reaching  the 
fortress,  however,  you  must  pass  the  great 
custom-house  on  the  Bavarian  frontier,  and 
fearing  we  might  be  delayed  there  too  long  by 
the  stupid  Austrian  officials,  and  thus  be  pre- 


86  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

vented  from  entering  the  city  before  the  gates 
were  closed,  we  resolved  to  wait  till  the  next 
morning  and  spend  the  night  at  Adelstaetten, 
a  pretty  village  about  a  league  from  Salzburg, 
and  the  last  Bavarian  post.  Night  was  fall- 
ing as  we  approached  a  little  wood  which  hid 
the  village  from  us.  There  we  asked  a  peas- 
ant how  far  we  had  still  to  go,  and  when  he 
had  answered  our  question  he  told  us,  evi- 
dently with  kind  intention,  that  we  should  find 
good  company  in  the  village,  for  a  few  hours 
earlier  three  journeymen  laborers  had  arrived 
there ;  and  then  he  added  that  we  should  no 
doubt  be  glad  to  meet  comrades  and  have  a 
gay  evening  with  them.  We  were  not  aston- 
ished to  be  taken  for  workmen,  since  every 
one  who  travels  here  on  foot,  with  a  knapsack 
on  his  back,  is  understood  to  belong  to  the 
laboring  class.  .  .  .  Arrived  at  the  village,  we 
were  delighted  to  find  that  the  three  journey- 
men were  our  traveling  companions.  They 
had  come,  like  ourselves,  from  Traunstein, 
where  we  had  missed  each  other  in  the  crowd, 
and  they  were  going  likewise  to  sleep  at  Adel- 
staetten,  to  avoid  the  custom-house.  Finally, 
on  Monday,  at  ten  o'clock,  we  crossed  the 
long  bridge  over  the  Saala,  between  the  white 
coats  with  yellow  trimmings  on  guard  there. 


A    VACATION  TRIP.  87 

On  the  Bavarian  frontier  we  had  hardly  re- 
membered that  there  was  a  custom-house,  and 
the  name  of  student  sufficed  to  pass  us  without 
our  showing  any  passports  ;  here,  on  the  con- 
trary, it  was  another  reason  for  the  strictest  ex- 
amination. "  Have  you  no  forbidden  books  ?  " 
was  the  first  question.  By  good  fortune,  be- 
fore crossing  the  bridge,  I  had  advised  Tret- 
tenbach  to  hide  his  song-book  in  the  lining  of 
his  boot.  I  am  assured  that  had  it  been  taken 
upon  him  he  would  not  have  been  allowed  to 
pass.  In  ransacking  Braun's  bag,  one  of  the 
officials  found  a  shell  such  as  are  gathered  by 
the  basketful  on  the  shores  of  the  Lake  of 
Neuchatel.  His  first  impulse  was  to  go  to  the 
office  and  inquire  whether  we  should  not  pay 
duty  on  this,  saying  that  it  was  no  doubt  for 
the  fabrication  of  false  pearls,  and  we  prob- 
ably had  plenty  more.  We  had  all  the  diffi- 
culty in  the  world  to  make  him  understand 
that  not  fifty  steps  from  the  custom-house  the 
shores  of  the  river  were  strewn  with  them.  .  .  . 
After  all  this  we  had  to  empty  our  purses  to 
show  that  we  had  money  enough  for  our  jour- 
ney, and  that  we  should  not  be  forced  to  beg 
in  order  to  get  through.  While  we  underwent 
this  inquisition,  another  officer  made  a  tour  of 
inspection  around  us,  to  observe  our  general 


88  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

bearing,  etc.  .  .  .  After  having  kept  us  thus 
on  coals  for  two  hours  they  gave  us  back  our 
passports,  and  we  went  our  way.  At  one 
o'clock  we  arrived  at  Salzburg  as  hungry  as 
wolves,  but  at  the  gate  we  had  still  to  wait 
and  give  up  our  passports  again  in  exchange 
for  receipts,  in  virtue  of  which  we  could  obtain 
permits  from  the  police  to  remain  in  the  city. 
From  our  inn,  we  sent  a  waiter  to  get  these 
permits,  but  he  presently  returned  with  the 
news  that  we  must  go  in  person  to  take  them ; 
there  was,  however,  no  hurry  ;  it  would  do  in 
three  or  four  hours  !  We  had  no  farther  diffi- 
culty except  that  it  was  made  a  condition  of 
our  stay  that  we  should  not  appear  in  student's 
dress.  This  dress,  they  said,  was  forbidden  in 
Austria.  They  begged  More  to  have  his  hair 
cut,  otherwise  it  would  be  shortened  gratis, 
and  also  informed  us  that  at  our  age  it  was  not 
becoming  to  dispense  with  cravats.  Happily, 
I  had  two  with  me,  and  Braun  tied  his  hand- 
kerchief around  his  neck.  It  astonished  me, 
also,  to  see  that  we  were  not  entered  on  the 
list  of  strangers  published  every  evening.  So 
it  was  also,  as  we  found,  with  other  students, 
though  the  persons  who  came  with  them  by 
the  same  conveyance,  even  the  children,  were 
duly  inscribed.  It  seems  this  is  a  precaution 
against  any  gathering  of  students.  .  .  . 


LIFE  AT  MUNICH.  89 

The  letter  concludes  in  haste  for  the  mail, 
and  if  the  story  of  the  journey  was  finished 
the  final  chapter  has  not  been  preserved. 
Some  extracts  from  the  home  letters  of  Agas- 
siz's  friend  Braun,  which  are  in  place  here, 
throw  light  on  their  university  life  for  the 
coming  year.1 

ALEXANDER  BRAUN  TO  HIS  FATHER. 

MUNICH,  November  18,  1828. 

...  I  will  tell  you  how  we  have  laid  out 
our  time  for  this  term.  Our  human  conscious- 
ness may  be  said  to  begin  at  half-past  five 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  hour  from  six 
to  seven  is  appointed  for  mathematics,  name- 
ly, geometry  and  trigonometry.  To  this  ap- 
pointment we  are  faithful,  unless  the  professor 
oversleeps  himself,  or  Agassiz  happens  to  have 
grown  to  his  bed,  an  event  which  sometimes 
occurs  at  the  opening  of  the  term.  From 
seven  to  eight  we  do  as  we  like,  including 
breakfast.  Under  Agassiz's  new  style  of  house- 
keeping the  coffee  is  made  in  a  machine 
which  is  devoted  during  the  day  to  the  soak- 
ing of  all  sorts  of  creatures  for  skeletons,  and 
in  the  evening  again  to  the  brewing  of  our 

1  See  Life  of  Alexander  Braun,  by  his  daughter,  Madame 
Cecile  Mettenius. 


90  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

tea.  At  eight  o'clock  comes  the  clinical  lec- 
ture of  Ringseis.  As  Ringseis  is  introduc- 
ing an  entirely  new  medical  system,  this  is 
not  wholly  without  general  physiological  and 
philosophical  interest.  At  ten  o'clock  Stahl 
lectures,  five  times  a  week,  on  mechanics  as 
preliminary  to  physics.  These  and  also  the 
succeeding  lectures,  given  only  twice  a  week 
on  the  special  natural  history  of  amphibians 
by  Wagler,  we  all  attend  together.  From 
twelve  to  one  o'clock  we  have  nothing  settled 
as  yet,  but  we  mean  to  take  the  lectures  of 
Dollinger,  in  single  chapters,  as,  for  instance, 
when  he  comes  to  the  organs  of  the  senses. 
At  one  o'clock  we  go  to  dinner,  for  which  we 
have  at  last  found  a  comfortable  and  regular 
place,  at  a  private  house,  after  having  dined 
everywhere  and  anywhere,  at  prices  from  nine 
to  twenty  kreutzers.  Here,  for  thirteen  kreut- 
zers l  each,  in  company  with  a  few  others, 
mostly  known  to  us,  we  are  provided  with  a 
good  and  neatly  served  meal.  After  dinner 
we  go  to  Dr.  Waltl,  with  whom  we  study 
chemistry,  using  Gmelin's  text-book,  and  are 
shown  the  most  important  experiments.  Next 
week  we  are  to  begin  entomology  with  Dr. 
Perty,  from  three  to  four,  three  tunes  a  week. 

1  About  nine  cents  of  our  money. 


LIFE  AT  MUNICH.  91 

From  one  to  two  o'clock  on  Saturday  we  have 
a  lesson  in  experimental  physiology,  plainly 
speaking,  in  animal  dissection,  from  Dr.  Oes- 
terreicher,  a  young  Decent,  who  has  written 
on  the  circulation  of  the  blood.  As  Agassiz 
dissects  a  great  many  animals,  especially  fish- 
es, at  the  house,  we  are  making  rapid  progress 
in  comparative  anatomy.  At  four  o'clock  we 
go  usually  once  a  week  to  hear  Oken  on  "  Na- 
tur-philosophie "  (a  course  we  attended  last 
term  also),  but  by  that  means  we  secure  a 
good  seat  for  Schelling's  lecture  immediately 
after.  A  man  can  hardly  hear  twice  in  his 
life  a  course  of  lectures  so  powerful  as  those 
Schelling  is  now  giving  on  the  philosophy  of 
revelation.  This  will  sound  strangely  to  you, 
because,  till  now,  men  have  not  believed  that 
revelation  could  be  a  subject  for  philosophical 
treatment ;  to  some  it  has  seemed  too  sacred ; 
to  others  too  irrational.  .  .  .  This  lecture 
brings  us  to  six  o'clock,  when  the  public 
courses  are  at  an  end :  we  go  home,  and  now 
begin  the  private  lectures.  Sometimes  Agas- 
siz tries  to  beat  French  rules  and  construc- 
tions into  our  brains,  or  we  have  a  lesson 
in  anatomy,  or  I  read  general  natural  his- 
tory aloud  to  William  Schimper.  By  and  by 
I  shall  review  the  natural  history  of  grasses 


92  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

and  ferns,  two  families  of  which  I  made  a 
special  study  last  summer.  Twice  a  week 
Karl  Schimper  lectures  to  us  on  the  morphol- 
ogy of  plants ;  a  very  interesting  course  on 
a  subject  but  little  known.  He  has  twelve 
listeners.  Agassiz  is  also  to  give  us  lectures 
occasionally  on  Sundays  upon  the  natural 
history  of  fishes.  You  see  there  is  enough 
to  do.  ... 

Somewhat  before  this,  early  in  1828,  Agas- 
siz had  made  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Joseph 
Dinkel,  an  artist.  A  day  spent  together  in 
the  country,  in  order  that  Mr.  Dinkel  might 
draw  a  brilliantly  colored  trout  from  life,  un- 
der the  immediate  direction  of  the  young 
naturalist,  led  to  a  relation  which  continued 
uninterruptedly  for  many  years.  Mr.  Dinkel 
afterward  accompanied  Agassiz,  as  his  artist, 
on  repeated  journeys,  being  constantly  em- 
ployed in  making  illustrations  for  the  "  Pois- 
sons  Fossiles  "  and  the  "  Poissons  d'Eau 
Douce,"  as  well  as  for  his  monographs  and 
smaller  papers.  The  two  larger  works,  the 
latter  of  which  remained  unfinished,  were  even 
now  in  embryo.  Not  only  was  Mr.  Dinkel  at 
work  upon  the  plates  for  the  Fresh-Water 
Fishes,  but  Mr.  J.  C.  Weber,  who  was  then 


AGASSIZ'S  STUDENT  LIFE.  93 

engaged  in  making,  under  Agassiz's  direction, 
the  illustrations  for  the  Spix  Fishes,  was  also 
giving  his  spare  hours  to  the  same  objects. 
Mr.  Dinkel  says  of  Agassiz's  student  life  at 
this  time  : 1  — 

"  I  soon  found  myself  engaged  four  or  five 
hours  almost  daily  in  painting  for  him  fresh- 
water fishes  from  the  life,  while  he  was  at  my 
side,  sometimes  writing  out  his  descriptions, 
sometimes  directing  me.  .  .  .  He  never  lost 
his  temper,  though  often  under  great  trial; 
he  remained  self-possessed  and  did  everything 
calmly,  having  a  friendly  smile  for  every  one 
and  a  helping  hand  for  those  who  were  in 
need.  He  was  at  that  time  scarcely  twenty 
years  old,  and  was  already  the  most  prominent 
among  the  students  at  Munich.  They  loved 
him,  and  had  a  high  consideration  for  him.  I 
had  seen  him  at  the  Swiss  students'  club  sev- 
eral times,  and  had  observed  him  among  the 
jolly  students ;  he  liked  merry  society,  but  he 
himself  was  in  general  reserved  and  never 
noisy.  He  picked  out  the  gifted  and  highly- 
learned  students,  and  would  not  waste  his  time 

1  Extract  from  notes  written  out  in  English  by  Mr.  Dinkel 
after  the  death  of  Agassiz  and  sent  to  me.  The  English, 
though  a  little  foreign,  is  so  expressive  that  it  would  lose  by 
any  attempt  to  change  it,  and  the  writer  will  excuse  me  for 
inserting  his  vivid  sketch  just  as  it  stands.  —  E.  C.  A. 


94  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

in  ordinary  conversation.  Often,  when  he  saw 
a  number  of  students  going  off  on  some  empty 
pleasure-trip,  he  said  to  me,  '  There  they  go 
with  the  other  fellows;  their  motto  is,  "Ich 
gehe  mit  den  andern."  I  will  go  my  own 
way,  Mr.  Dinkel,  —  and  not  alone  :  I  will  be 
a  leader  of  others.'  In  all  his  doings  there 
was  an  ease  and  calm  which  was  remarkable. 
His  studio  was  a  perfect  German  student's 
room.  It  was  large,  with  several  wide  win- 
dows ;  the  furniture  consisted  of  a  couch  and 
about  half  a  dozen  chairs,  beside  some  tables 
for  the  use  of  his  artists  and  himself.  Dr. 
Alex.  Braun  and  Dr.  Schimper  lodged  in  the 
same  house,  and  seemed  to  me  to  share  his 
studio.  Being  botanists,  they,  too,  brought 
home  what  they  collected  in  their  excursions, 
and  all  this  found  a  place  in  the  atelier,  on 
the  couch,  on  the  seats,  on  the  floors.  Books 
filled  the  chairs,  one  alone  being  left  for  the 
other  artist,  while  I  occupied  a  standing  desk 
with  my  drawing.  No  visitor  could  sit  down, 
and  sometimes  there  was  little  room  to  stand 
or  move  about.  The  walls  were  white,  and 
diagrams  were  drawn  on  them,  to  which,  by 
and  by,  we  artists  added  skeletons  and  cari- 
catures. In  short,  it  was  quite  original.  I 
was  some  time  there  before  I  could  discover 


COLLECTIONS.  95 

the  real  names  of  his  friends:  each  had  a 
nickname,  —  Molluscus,  Cyprinus,  Rhubarb, 
etc." 

From  this  glimpse  into  "  The  Little  Acad- 
emy" we  return  to  the  thread  of  the  home 
letters,  learning  from  the  next  one  that  Agas- 
siz's  private  collections  were  assuming  rather 
formidable  proportions  when  considered  as 
part  of  the  household  furniture.  Brought 
together  in  various  ways,  partly  by  himself, 
partly  in  exchange  for  duplicates,  partly  as 
pay  for  arranging  specimens  in  the  Munich 
Museum,  they  had  already  acquired,  when 
compared  with  his  small  means,  a  considerable 
pecuniary  value,  and  a  far  higher  scientific 
importance.  They  included  fishes,  some  rare 
mammalia,  reptiles,  shells,  birds,  an  herbarium 
of  some  three  thousand  species  of  plants  col- 
lected by  himself,  and  a  small  cabinet  of  min- 
erals. After  enumerating  them  in  a  letter  to 
his  parents  he  continues  :  "  You  can  imagine 
that  all  these  things  are  in  my  way  now  that 
I  cannot  attend  to  them,  and  that  for  want 
of  room  and  care  they  are  piled  up  and  in 
danger  of  spoiling.  You  see  by  my  list  that 
the  whole  collection  is  valued  at  two  hundred 
louis ;  and  this  is  so  low  an  estimate  that 
even  those  who  sell  objects  of  natural  his- 


96  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

tory  would  not  hesitate  to  take  them  at  that 
price.  -You  will  therefore  easily  understand 
how  anxious  I  am  to  keep  them  intact.  Can 
you  not  find  me  a  place  where  they  might  be 
spread  out?  I  have  thought  that  perhaps 
my  uncle  in  Neuchatel  would  have  the  kind- 
ness to  let  some  large  shelves  be  put  up  in 
the  little  upper  room  of  his  house  in  Cudrefin, 
where,  far  from  being  an  annoyance  or  caus- 
ing any  smell,  my  collection,  if  placed  in  a 
case  under  glass,  or  disposed  in  some  other 
suitable  manner,  would  be  an  ornament.  Be 
so  kind  as  to  propose  it  to  him,  and  if  he 
consents  I  will  then  tell  you  what  I  shall 
need  for  its  arrangement.  Remember  that 
on  this  depends,  in  great  part,  the  preserva- 
tion of  my  specimens,  and  answer  as  soon  as 
possible." 

Agassiz  was  now  hurrying  forward  both  his 
preparation  for  his  degree  and  the  completion 
of  his  Brazilian  Fishes,  in  the  hope  of  at  last 
fulfilling  his  longing  for  a  journey  of  explora- 
tion. This  hope  is  revealed  in  his  next  home 
letter.  The  letter  is  a  long  one,  and  the  first 
half  is  omitted  since  it  concerns  only  the  ar- 
rangements for  his  collections,  the  care  to  be 
taken  of  them,  etc. 


LETTER  TO  HIS  FATHER.  97 

TO   HIS   FATHER. 

MUNICH,  February  14, 1829. 

...  But  now  I  must  talk  to  you  of  more 
important  things,  not  of  what  I  possess,  but 
of  what  I  am  to  be.  Let  me  first  recall  one 
or  two  points  touched  upon  before  in  our  cor- 
respondence, which  should  now  be  fully  dis- 
cussed. 

1st.  You  remember  that  when  I  first  left 
Switzerland  I  promised  you  to  win  the  title 
of  Doctor  in  two  years,  and  to  be  prepared 
(after  having  completed  my  studies  in  Paris) 
to  pass  my  examination  before  the  "  Conseil 
de  Sante,"  and  begin  practice. 

2d.  You  will  not  have  forgotten  either  that 
you  exacted  this  only  that  I  might  have  a 
profession,  and  that  you  promised,  should  I 
be  able  to  make  my  way  in  the  career  of  let- 
ters and  natural  history,  you  would  not  op- 
pose my  wishes.  I  am  indeed  aware  that  in 
the  latter  case  you  see  but  one  obstacle,  that 
of  absence  from  my  country  and  separation 
from  all  who  are  dear  to  me.  But  you  know 
me  too  well  to  think  that  I  would  voluntarily 
impose  upon  myself  such  an  exile.  Let  us  see 
whether  we  cannot  resolve  these  difficulties  to 
our  mutual  satisfaction,  and  consider  what  is 

VOL.   I.  7 


98  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

the  surest  road  to  the  end  I  have  proposed  to 
myself  ever  since  I  began  my  medical  studies. 
Weigh  all  my  reasons,  for  in  this  my  peace  of 
mind  and  my  future  happiness  are  concerned. 
Examine  my  conduct  with  reference  to  what 
I  propose  in  every  light,  that  of  son  and  Vau- 
dois  citizen  included,  and  I  feel  sure  you  will 
concur  in  my  views. 

Here  is  my  aim  and  the  means  by  which  I 
propose  to  carry  it  o"ut.  I  wish  it  may  be 
said  of  Louis  Agassiz  that  he  was  the  first 
naturalist  of  his  time,  a  good  citizen,  and  a 
good  son,  beloved  of  those  who  knew  him. 
I  feel  within  myself  the  strength  of  a  whole 
generation  to  work  toward  this  end,  and  I 
will  reach  it  if  the  means  are  not  wanting. 
Let  us  see  in  what  these  means  consist.  [Here 
follows  the  summing  up  of  his  reasons  for 
preferring  a  professorship  of  natural  history 
to  the  practice  of  medicine,  and  his  intention 
of  trying  for  a  diploma  as  Doctor  of  Philoso- 
phy in  Germany.]  But  how  obtain  a  pro- 
fessorship, you  will  say,  —  that  is  the  impor- 
tant point  ?  I  answer,  the  first  step  is  to 
make  myself  a  European  name,  and  for  that 
I  am  on  the  right  road.  In  the  first  place 
my  work  on  the  fishes  of  Brazil,  just  about 
to  appear,  will  make  me  favorably  known.  I 


LETTER  TO  HIS  FATHER.  99 

am  sure  it  will  be  kindly  received ;  for  at  the 
General  Assembly  of  German  naturalists  and 
medical  men  last  September,  in  Berlin,  the 
part  already  finished  and  presented  before  the 
Assembly  was  praised  in  a  manner  for  which 
I  was  quite  unprepared.  The  professors  also, 
to  whom  I  was  known,  spoke  of  me  there  in 
very  favorable  terms. 

In  the  second  place  there  are  now  prepar- 
ing two  expeditions  of  natural  history,  one 
by  M.  de  Humboldt,  with  whose  reputation 
you  are  surely  familiar,  —  the  same  who  spent 
several  years  in  exploring  the  equatorial  re- 
gions of  South  America,  in  company  with  M. 
Bonpland.  He  has  been  for  some  years  at 
Berlin,  and  is  now  about  to  start  on  a  journey 
to  the  Ural  Mountains,  the  Caucasus,  and  the 
confines  of  the  Caspian  Sea.  Braun,  Schim- 
per,  and  I  have  been  proposed  to  him  as 
traveling  companions  by  several  of  our  pro- 
fessors ;  but  the  application  may  come  too 
late,  for  M.  de  Humboldt  decided  upon  this 
journey  long  ago,  and  has  probably  already 
chosen  the  naturalists  who  are  to  accompany 
him.  How  happy  I  should  be  to  join  this  ex- 
pedition to  a  country  the  climate  of  which  is 
by  no  means  unhealthy,  under  the  direction  of 
a  man  so  generally  esteemed,  to  whom  the  Em- 


100  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

peror  of  Eussia  has  promised  help  and  an  es- 
cort at  all  times  and  under  all  circumstances. 
The  second  expedition  is  to  a  country  quite 
as  salubrious,  and  which  presents  no  dangers 
whatever  for  travelers,  —  South  America.  It 
will  be  under  the  direction  of  M.  Ackermann, 
known  as  a  distinguished  agriculturist  and  as 
Councillor  of  State  to  the  Grand  Duke  of 
Baden.  I  should  prefer  to  go  with  Humboldt ; 
but  if  I  am  too  late,  I  feel  very  sure  of  being 
able  to  join  the  second  expedition.  So  it  de- 
pends, you  see,  only  on  your  consent.  This 
journey  is  to  last  two  years,  at  the  end  of 
which  time,  happily  at  home  once  more,  I  can 
follow  with  all  desirable  facilities  the  career  I 
have  chosen.  If  there  should  be  a  place  for 
me  at  Lausanne,  which  I  should  prefer  to  any 
other  locality,  I  could  devote  my  life  to  teach- 
ing my  young  countrymen,  awaken  in  them 
the  taste  for  science  and  observation  so  much 
neglected  among  us,  and  thus  be  more  useful 
to  my  canton  than  I  could  be  as  a  practitioner. 
These  projects  may  not  succeed  ;  but  in  the 
present  state  of  things  all  the  probabilities  are 
favorable.  Therefore,  I  beg  you  to  consider 
it  seriously,  to  consult  my  uncle  in  Lausanne, 
and  to  write  me  at  once  what  you  think.  .  .  . 

In  spite  of   the  earnest  desire  for  travel 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  FATHER.          101 

shown  in  this  letter  it  will  be  seen  later  how 
the  restless  aspirations  of  childhood,  boyhood, 
and  youth,  which  were,  after  all,  only  a  latent 
love  of  research,  crystallize  into  the  concen- 
trated purpose  of  the  man  who  could  remain 
for  months  shut  up  in  his  study,  leaving  his 
microscope  only  to  eat  and  sleep,  —  a  life  as 
sedentary  as  ever  was  lived  by  a  closet  student. 


FKOM   HIS    FATHER. 


ORBE,  February  23,  1829. 

...  It  was  not  without  deep  emotion  that 
we  read  your  letter  of  the  14th,  and  I  easily 
understand  that,  anticipating  its  effect  upon 
us  all,  you  have  deferred  writing  as  long  as 
possible.  Yet  you*  were  wrong  in  so  doing ; 
had  we  known  your  projects  earlier  we  might 
have  forestalled  for  you  the  choice  of  M.  de 
Humboldt,  whose  expedition  seems  to  us  pref- 
erable, in  every  respect,  to  that  of  M.  Acker- 
mann.  The  first  embraces  a  wider  field,  and 
concerns  the  history  of  man  rather  than  that 
of  animals ;  the  latter  is  confined  to  an  excur- 
sion along  the  sea-board,  where  there  would 
be,  no  doubt,  a  rich  harvest  for  science,  but 
much  less  for  philosophy.  However  that  may 
be,  your  father  and  mother,  while  they  grieve 
for  the  day  that  will  separate  them  from  their 


102  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

oldest  son,  will  offer  no  obstacles  to  his  pro- 
jects, but  pray  God  to  bless  them.  .  .  . 

The  subjoined  letter  of  about  the  same  date 
from  Alexander  Braun  to  his  father  tells  us 
how  the  projects  so  ardently  urged  upon  his 
parents  by  Agassiz,  and  so  affectionately  ac- 
cepted by  them,  first  took  form  in  the  minds 
of  the  friends. 

BRAUN   TO   HIS   FATHER. 

MUNICH,  February  15,  1829. 

.  .  .  Last  Thursday  we  were  at  Oken's. 
There  was  interesting  talk  on  all  sorts  of  sub- 
jects, bringing  us  gradually  to  the  Ural  and 
then  to  Humboldt's  journey,  and  finally  Oken 
asked  if  we  would  not  like  to  go  with  Hum- 
boldt.  To  this  we  gave  warm  assent,  and 
told  him  that  if  he  could  bring  it  about  we 
would  be  ready  to  start  at  a  day's  notice,  and 
Agassiz  added,  eagerly,  "  Yes,  —  and  if  there 
were  any  hope  that  he  would  take  us,  a  word 
from  you  would  have  more  weight  than  any- 
thing." Oken's  answer  gave  us  but  cold  com- 
fort ;  nevertheless,  he  promised  to  write  at 
once  to  Humboldt  in  our  behalf.  With  this, 
we  went  home  in  great  glee ;  it  was  very  late 
and  a  bright  moonlight  night.  Agassiz  rolled 


LETTER   TO  CUV1ER.  103 

himself  in  the  snow  for  joy,  and  we  agreed 
that  however  little  hope  there  might  be  of 
our  joining  the  expedition,  still  the  fact  that 
Humboldt  would  hear  of  us  in  this  way  was 
worth  something,  even  if  it  were  only  that  we 
might  be  able  to  say  to  him  one  of  these  days, 
"  We  are  the  fellows  whose  company  you  re- 
jected." 

With  this  hope  the  friends  were  obliged 
to  content  themselves,  for  after  a  few  weeks 
of  alternate  encouragement  and  despondency 
their  bright  vision  faded.  Oken  fulfilled  his 
promise  and  wrote  to  Humboldt,  recommend- 
ing them  most  warmly.  Humboldt  answered 
that  his  plans  were  conclusively  settled,  and 
that  he  had  chosen  the  only  assistants  who  were 
to  accompany  him,  —  Ehrenberg  and  Rose. 

In  connection  with  this  frustrated  plan  is 
here  given  the  rough  draft  of  a  letter  from 
Agassiz  to  Cuvier,  written  evidently  at  a  some- 
what earlier  date.  Although  a  mere  frag- 
ment, it  is  the  outpouring  of  the  same  passion- 
ate desire  for  a  purely  scientific  life,  and  shows 
that  the  opportunity  suggested  by  Humboldt's 
journey  had  only  given  a  definite  aim  to  pro- 
jects already  full  grown.  From  the  contents 
it  must  have  been  written  in  1828.  After 


104  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

some  account  of  his  early  studies,  which  would 
be  mere  repetition  here,  he  goes  on  :  "  Be- 
fore finishing  my  letter,  allow  me  to  ask  some 
advice  from  you,  whom  I  revere  as  a  father, 
and  whose  works  have  been  till  now  my  only 
guide.  Five  years  ago  I  was  sent  to  the  med- 
ical school  at  Zurich.  After  the  first  few  lec- 
tures there  in  anatomy  and  zoology  I  could 
think  of  nothing  but  skeletons.  In  a  short 
time  I  had  learned  to  dissect,  and  had  made  for 
myself  a  small  collection  of  skulls  of  animals 
from  different  classes.  I  passed  two  years  in 
Zurich,  studying  whatever  I  could  find  in  the 
Museum,  and  dissecting  all  the  animals  I  could 
procure.  I  even  sent  to  Berlin  at  this  time 
for  a  monkey  in  spirits  of  wine,  that  I  might 
compare  the  nervous  system  with  that  of  man. 
I  spent  all  the  little  means  I  had  in  order  to 
see  and  learn  as  much  as  possible.  Then  I 
persuaded  my  father  to  let  me  go  to  Heidel- 
berg, where  for  a  year  I  followed  Tiedemann's 
courses  in  human  anatomy.  I  passed  almost 
the  whole  winter  in  the  anatomical  laboratory. 
The  following  summer  I  attended  the  lectures 
of  Leuckart  on  zoology,  and  those  of  Bronn 
on  fossils.  When  at  Zurich,  the  longing  to 
travel  some  day  as  a  naturalist  had  taken  pos- 
session of  me,  and  at  Heidelberg  this  desire 


LETTER   TO  CUVIER.  105 

only  increased.  My  frequent  visits  to  the  Mu- 
seum at  Frankfort,  and  what  I  heard  there 
concerning  M.  Riippell  himself,  strengthened 
my  purpose  even  more  than  all  I  had  previ- 
ously read.  I  was,  as  it  were,  Ruppell's  trav- 
eling companion :  the  activity,  the  difficulties 
to  be  overcome,  all  were  present  to  me  as  I 
looked  upon  the  treasures  he  had  brought  to- 
gether from  the  deserts  of  Africa.  The  vision 
of  difficulty  thus  vanquished,  and  of  the  in- 
ward satisfaction  arising  from  it,  tended  to 
give  all  my  studies  a  direction  in  keeping  with 
my  projects. 

"  I  felt  that  to  reach  my  aim  more  surely  it 
was  important  to  complete  my  medical  stud- 
ies, and  for  this  I  came  to  Munich  eighteen 
months  ago.  Still  I  could  not  make  up  my 
mind  to  renounce  the  natural  sciences.  I  at- 
tended some  of  the  pathological  lectures,  but 
I  soon  found  that  I  was  neglecting  them; 
and  yielding  once  more  to  my  inclination,  I 
followed  consecutively  the  lectures  of  Dollin- 
ger  on  comparative  anatomy,  those  of  Oken 
on  natural  history,  those  of  Fuchs  on  miner- 
alogy, as  well  as  the  courses  of  astronomy, 
physics,  chemistry,  and  mathematics.  I  was 
confirmed  in  this  withdrawal  from  medical 
studies  by  the  proposition  of  M.  de  Martins 


106  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

that  I  should  describe  the  fishes  brought  back 
by  Spix  from  Brazil,  and  to  this  I  consented 
the  more  gladly  because  ichthyology  has  al- 
ways been  a  favorite  study  with  me.  I  have 
not,  however,  been  able  to  give  them  all  the 
care  I  could  have  wished,  for  M.  de  Martius, 
anxious  to  complete  the  publication  of  these 
works,  has  urged  upon  me  a  rapid  execution. 
I  hope,  nevertheless,  that  I  have  made  no 
gross  errors,  and  I  am  the  less  likely  to  have 
done  so,  because  I  had  as  my  guide  the  ob- 
servations you  had  kindly  made  for  him  on 
the  plates  of  Spix.  Several  of  these  plates 
were  not  very  exact ;  they  have  been  set  aside 
and  new  drawings  made.  I  beg  that  you  will 
judge  this  work  when  it  reaches  you  with  in- 
dulgence, as  the  first  literary  essay  of  a  young 
man.  I  hope  to  complete  it  in  the  course  of 
the  next  summer.  I  would  beg  you,  in  ad- 
vance, to  give  me  a  paternal  word  of  advice 
as  to  the  direction*  my  studies  should  then 
take.  Ought  I  to  devote  myself  to  the  study 
of  medicine  ?  I  have  no  fortune,  it  is  true ; 
but  I  would  gladly  sacrifice  my  life  if,  by  so 
doing,  I  could  serve  the  cause  of  science. 
Though  I  have  not  even  a  presentiment  of  any 
means  with  which  I  may  one  day  travel  in  dis- 
tant countries,  I  have,  nevertheless,  prepared 


LETTER    TO  CUVIER.  107 

myself  during  the  last  three  years  as  if  I  might 
be  off  at  any  minute.  I  have  learned  to  skin 
all  sorts  of  animals,  even  very  large  ones.  I 
have  made  more  than  a  hundred  skeletons  of 
quadrupeds,  birds,  reptiles,  and  fishes ;  I  have 
tested  all  the  various  liquors  for  preserving 
such  animals  as  should  not  be  skinned,  and 
have  thought  of  the  means  of  supplying  the 
want  in  countries  where  the  like  preparations 
are  not  to  be  had,  in  case  of  need.  Finally, 
I  have  trained  as  traveling  companion  a  young 
friend,1  and  awakened  in  him  the  same  love  of 
the  natural  sciences.  He  is  an  excellent  hun- 
ter, and  at  my  instigation  has  been  taking 
lessons  in  drawing,  so  that  he  is  now  able  to 
sketch  from  nature  such  objects  as  may  be 
desirable.  We  often  pass  delightful  moments 
in  our  imaginary  travels  through  unknown 
countries,  building  thus  our  castles  in  Spain. 
Pardon  me  if  I  talk  to  you  of  projects  which 
at  first  sight  seem  puerile ;  only  a  fixed  aim 
is  needed  to  give  them  reality,  and  to  you  I 
come  for  counsel.  My  longing  is  so  great 
that  I  feel  the  need  of  expressing  it  to  some 
one  who  will  understand  me,  and  your  sympa- 
thy would  make  me  the  happiest  of  mortals. 
I  am  so  pursued  by  this  thought  of  a  scientific 

1  William  Schimper,  brother  of  Karl. 


108  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

journey  that  it  presents  itself  under  a  thou- 
sand forms,  and  all  that  I  undertake  looks 
toward  one  end.  I  have  for  six  months  fre- 
quented a  blacksmith's  and  carpenter's  shop, 
learning  to  handle  hammer  and  axe,  and  I  also 
practice  arms,  the  bayonet  and  sabre  exercise. 
I  am  strong  and  robust,  know  how  to  swim, 
and  do  not  fear  forced  marches.  I  have,  when 
botanizing  and  geologizing,  walked  my  twelve 
or  fifteen  leagues  a  day  for  eight  days  in  suc- 
cession, carrying  on  my  back  a  heavy  bag 
loaded  with  plants  or  minerals.  In  one  word, 
I  seem  to  myself  made  to  be  a  traveling  natu- 
ralist. I  only  need  to  regulate  the  impetuos- 
ity which  carries  me  away.  I  beg  you,  then, 
to  be  my  guide." 

The  unfinished  letter  closes  abruptly,  hav- 
ing neither  signature  nor  address.  Perhaps 
the  writer's  courage  failed  him  and  it  never 
was  sent.  An  old  letter  (date  1827)  from 
Cuvier  to  Martius,  found  among  Agassiz's  pa- 
pers of  this  time,  and  containing  the  very 
notes  on  the  Spix  Fishes  to  which  allusion 
is  here  made,  leaves  no  doubt,  however,  that 
this  appeal  was  intended  for  the  great  master 
who  exercised  so  powerful  an  influence  upon 
Agassiz  throughout  his  whole  life. 

In   the   spring  of   1829  Agassiz  took  his 


DIPLOMA    OF  PHILOSOPHY.  109 

diploma  in  the  faculty  of  philosophy.  He  did 
this  with  no  idea  of  making  it  a  substitute  for 
his  medical  degree,  but  partly  in  deference 
to  Martius,  who  wished  the  name  of  his  young 
colleague  to  appear  on  the  title-page  of  the 
Brazilian  Fishes  with  the  dignity  of  Doc- 
tor, and  partly  because  he  believed  it  would 
strengthen  his  chance  of  a  future  professor- 
ship. Of  his  experience  on  this  occasion  he 
gives  some  account  in  the  following  letter  :  — 

TO   HIS   BROTHER. 

MUNICH,  May  22,  1829. 

...  As  it  was  necessary  for  me  to  go 
through  with  my  examination  at  once,  and  as 
the  days  for  promotion  here  were  already  en- 
gaged two  months  in  advance,  I  decided  to 
pass  it  at  Erlangen.  That  I  might  not  go 
alone,  and  also  for  the  pleasure  of  their  com- 
pany, I  persuaded  Schimper  and  Michahelles 
to  do  the  same.  Braun  wanted  to  be  of  the 
party,  but  afterward  decided  to  wait  awhile. 
We  made  our  request  to  the  Faculty  in  a 
long  Latin  letter  (because,  you  know,  among 
savants  it  is  the  thing  to  speak  and  write  the 
language  you  know  least),  requesting  permis- 
sion to  pass  our  examination  in  writing,  and 
to  go  to  Erlangen  only  for  the  colloquium  and 


110  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

promotion.    They  granted  our  request  on  con- 
dition of  our  promise  (jurisjurandi  loco  polli- 
citi  sumus)  to  answer  the  questions  propounded 
without  help  from  any  one  and  without  con- 
sulting books.      Among  other  things  I  had  to 
develop  a  natural  system  of  zoology,  to  show 
the  relation  between  human  history  and  nat- 
ural history,  to  determine  the  true  basis  and 
limits  of  the  philosophy  of  nature,  etc.     As 
an  inaugural   dissertation,   I  presented  some 
general  and  novel  considerations  on  the  for- 
mation of  the  skeleton  throughout  the  animal 
kingdom,  from  the   infusoria,   mollusks,  and 
insects  to  the  vertebrates,  properly  so  called. 
The  examiners  were  sufficiently  satisfied  with 
my  answers  to  give  me  my  degree  the  23d 
or  24th  of  April,  without  waiting  for  the  col- 
loquium and  promotion,  writing  to  me   that 
they  were  satisfied  with  my  examination,  and 
therefore  forwarded  my  diploma  without  re- 
gard to  the  oral  examination.  .  .  .  The  Dean 
of  the  Faculty,  in  inclosing  it  to  me,  added 
that  he  hoped  before  long  to  see  me  profes- 
sor, and   no  less   the    ornament    of   my  uni- 
versity in  that  position  than  I   had  hitherto 
been  as  student.    I  must  try  not  to  disappoint 
him. 


SENDS  HOME  HIS  BOOK.  Ill 

A  letter  from  his  brother  contains  a  few 
lines  in  reference  to  this.  "  Last  evening, 
dear  Louis,  your  two  diplomas  reached  me. 
I  congratulate  you  with  all  my  heart  on  your 
success.  I  am  going  to  send  to  grandpapa 
the  one  destined  for  him,  and  I  see  in  advance 
all  his  pleasure,  though  it  would  be  greater 
if  the  word  medicine  stood  for  that  of  phi- 
losophy." 

The  first  part  of  the  work  on  the  Brazilian 
Fishes  was  now  completed,  and  he  had  the 
pleasure  of  sending  it  to  his  parents  as  his 
own  forerunner.  After  joining  a  scientific 
meeting  to  be  held  at  Heidelberg,  in  Septem- 
ber, he  was  to  pass  a  month  at  home  before 
returning  to  Munich  for  the  completion  of 
his  medical  studies. 


TO   HIS   PARENTS. 


MUNICH,  July  4,  1829. 

...  I  hope  when  you  read  this  letter  you 
will  have  received  the  first  part  of  my  Bra- 
zilian Fishes  from  M.  ,  of  Geneva,  to 

whom  Martius  had  to  send  a  package  of 
plants,  with  which  my  book  was  inclosed.  I 
venture  to  think  that  this  work  will  give  me 
a  name,  and  I  await  with  impatience  the  crit- 
icism that  I  suppose  it  will  receive  from  Cu- 


112  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

vier.  ...  I  think  the  best  way  of  reaching 
the  various  aims  I  have  in  view  is  to  continue 
the  career  on  which  I  have  started,  and  to  pub- 
lish as  soon  as  possible  my  natural  history  of 
the  fresh-water  fishes  of  Germany  and  Switz- 
erland. I  propose  to  issue  it  in  numbers,  each 
containing  twelve  colored  plates  accompanied 
by  six  sheets  of  letter-press.  ...  In  the  mid- 
dle of  September  there  is  to  be  a  meeting  of 
all  the  naturalists  and  medical  men  of  Ger- 
many, to  which  foreign  savants  are  invited.  A 
similar  meeting  has  been  held  for  the  last  two 
or  three  years  in  one  or  another  of  the  brilliant 
centres  of  Germany.  This  year  it  will  take 
place  at  Heidelberg.  Could  one  desire  a  bet- 
ter occasion  to  make  known  a  projected  work  ? 
I  could  even  show  the  original  drawings  al- 
ready made  of  species  only  found  in  the  en- 
virons of  Munich,  and,  so  to  speak,  unknown 
to  naturalists.  At  Heidelberg  will  be  assem- 
bled Englishmen,  Danes,  Swedes,  Russians,  and 
even  Italians.  If  I  could  before  then  arrange 
everything  and  distribute  the  printed  circulars 
of  my  work  I  should  be  sure  of  success.  .  .  . 

In  those  days  of  costly  postage  one  sheet  of 
writing  paper  was  sometimes  made  to  serve 
for  several  members  of  the  family.  The  next 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  MOTHER.          113 

crowded  letter  contains  chiefly  domestic  de- 
tails, but  closes  with  a  postscript  from  Mme. 
Agassiz,  filling,  as  she  says,  the  only  remain- 
ing corner,  and  expressing  her  delight  in  his 
diploma  and  in  the  completion  of  his  book. 


FROM    HIS   MOTHER. 


August  16,  1829. 

.  .  .  The  place  your  brother  has  left  me 
seems  very  insufficient  for  all  that  I  have  to 
say,  dear  Louis,  but  I  will  begin  by  thanking 
you  for  the  happiness,  as  sweet  as  it  is  deeply 
felt,  which  your  success  has  given  us.  Already 
our  satisfaction  becomes  the  reward  of  your 
efforts.  We  wait  with  impatience  for  the  mo- 
ment when  we  shall  see  you  and  talk  with  you. 
Your  correspondence  leaves  many  blanks,  and 
we  are  sometimes  quite  ashamed  that  we  have 
so  few  details  to  give  about  your  book.  You 
will  be  surprised  that  it  has  not  yet  reached 
us.  Does  the  gentleman  in  Geneva  intend  to 
read  it  before  sending  it  to  us,  or  has  he  per- 
haps not  received  the  package  ?  Not  hearing 
we  are  uneasy.  .  .  .  Good-by,  my  dear  son ; 
I  have  no  room  for  more,  except  to  add  my 
tender  love  for  you.  An  honorable  mention 
of  your  name  in  the  Lausanne  Gazette  has 
brought  us  many  pleasant  congratulations.  .  .  . 

VOL.  I.  8 


LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

TO   HIS   FATHER. 

August,  1829. 

...  I  hope  by  this  time  you  have  my  book. 
I  can  the  less  explain  the  delay  since  M.  Cu- 
vier,  to  whom  I  sent  it  in  the  same  way,  has 
acknowledged  its  arrival.  I  inclose  his  let- 
ter, hoping  it  will  give  you  pleasure  to  read 
what  one  of  the  greatest  naturalists  of  the  age 
writes  me  about  it. 

CUVIER   TO   LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

PARIS,  AU  JARDIN  DU  Roi,  August  3,  1829. 
.  .  .  You  and  M.  de  Martius  have  done  me 
honor  in  placing  my  name  at  the  head  of  a 
work  so  admirable  as  the  one  you  have  just 
published.  The  importance  and  the  rarity  of 
the  species  therein  described,  as  well  as  the 
beauty  of  the  figures,  will  make  the  work  an 
important  one  in  ichthyology,  and  nothing 
could  heighten  its  value  more  than  the  accu- 
racy of  your  descriptions.  It  will  be  of  the 
greatest  use  to  me  in  my  History  of  Fishes. 
I  had  already  referred  to  the  plates  in  the 
second  edition  of  my  "  Regne  Animal."  I 
shall  do  all  in  my  power  to  accelerate  the  sale 
among  amateurs,  either  by  showing  it  to  such 
as  meet  at  my  house  or  by  calling  attention 
to  it  in  scientific  journals. 


LETTER  FROM  CUVIER.  115 

I  look  with  great  interest  for  your  history 
of  the  fishes  of  the  Alps.  It  cannot  but  fill 
a  wide  gap  in  that  portion  of  natural  history, 
—  above  all,  in  the  different  divisions  of  the 
genus  Salmo.  The  figures  of  Bloch,  those  of 
Meidinger,  and  those  of  Marsigli,  are  quite 
insufficient.  We  have  the  greater  part  of  the 
species  here,  so  that  it  will  be  easy  for  me 
to  verify  the  characters ;  but  only  an  artist, 
working  on  the  spot,  with  specimens  fresh 
from  the  water,  can  secure  the  colors.  You 
will,  no  doubt,  have  much  to  add  also  respect- 
ing the  development,  habits,  and  use  of  all 
these  fishes.  Perhaps  you  would  do  well  to 
limit  yourself  at  first  to  a  monograph  of  the 
Salmones. 

With  my  thanks  for  the  promised  docu- 
ments, accept  the  assurance  of  my  warm  re- 
gard and  very  sincere  attachment. 

B.  G.  CUVIER. 

At  last  comes  the  moment,  so  long  antici- 
pated, when  the  young  naturalist's  first  book 
is  in  the  hands  of  his  parents.  The  news  of 
its  reception  is  given  in  a  short  and  hurried 
note. 


116  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 


FROM   HIS   FATHER. 


ORBE,  August  31,  1829. 

I  hasten,  my  dear  son,  to  announce  the  ar- 
rival of  your  beautiful  work,  which  reached 
us  on  Thursday,  from  Geneva.  I  have  no 
terms  in  which  to  express  the  pleasure  it  has 
given  me.  In  two  words,  for  I  have  only  a 
moment  to  myself,  I  repeat  my  urgent  en- 
treaty that  you  would  hasten  your  return  as 
much  as  possible.  .  .  .  The  old  father,  who 
waits  for  you  with  open  heart  and  arms,  sends 
you  the  most  tender  greeting.  .  .  . 


CHAPTER  IV. 

1829-1830:  ^ET.   22-23. 

Scientific  Meeting  at  Heidelberg.  —  Visit  at  Home.  —  Illness 
and  Death  of  his  Grandfather.  —  Return  to  Munich. — 
Plans  for  Future  Scientific  Publications. — Takes  his  De- 
gree of  Medicine.  —  Visit  to  Vienna.  —  Return  to  Munich. 
—  Home  Letters.  — Last  Days  at  Munich. — Autobiograph- 
ical Review  of  School  and  University  Life. 

TO    HIS   PARENTS. 

HEIDELBERG,  September  25, 1829. 
.  .  .  THE  time  of  our  meeting  is  almost  at 
hand.  Relieved  from  all  anxiety  about  the 
subjects  I  had  wished  to  present  here,  I  can 
now  be  quietly  with  you  and  enjoy  the  rest 
and  freedom  I  have  so  long  needed.  The  ten- 
sion of  mind,  forced  upon  me  by  the  effort  to 
reach  my  goal  in  time,  has  crowded  out  the 
thoughts  which  are  most  present  when  I  am 
at  peace.  I  will  not  talk  to  you  of  what  I 
have  been  doing  lately,  (a  short  letter  from 
Frankfort  will  have  put  you  on  my  track), 
nor  of  the  relations  I  have  formed  at  the  Hei- 
delberg meeting,  nor  of  the  manner  in  which 


118  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

I  have  been  received,  etc.  These  are  matters 
better  told  than  written.  ...  I  intend  to  leave 
here  to-morrow  or  the  day  after,  according 
to  circumstances.  I  shall  stay  some  days  at 
Carlsruhe  to  put  my  affairs  in  order,  and  from 
there  make  the  journey  home  as  quickly  as 
possible.  .  .  . 

The  following  month  we  find  him  once  more 
at  home  in  the  parsonage  of  Orbe.  After  the 
first  pleasure  and  excitement  of  return,  his 
time  was  chiefly  spent  in  arranging  his  col- 
lections at  Cudrefin,  where  his  grandfather 
had  given  him  house-room  for  them.  In  this 
work  he  had  the  help  of  the  family  in  gen- 
eral, who  made  a  sort  of  scientific  fete  of  the 
occasion.  But  it  ended  sadly  with  the  illness 
and  death  of  the  kind  old  grandfather,  under 
whose  roof  children  and  grandchildren  had 
been  wont  to  assemble. 


AGASSIZ   TO   BRAUN. 


ORBE,  December  3, 1829. 

...  I  will  devote  an  hour  of  this  last  even- 
ing I  am  to  pass  in  Orbe,  to  talking  with  you. 
You  will  wonder  that  I  am  still  here,  and  that 
I  have  not  written.  You  already  know  that  I 
have  been  arranging  my  collections  at  Cudre- 


ILLNESS  OF  HIS   GRANDFATHER.      119 

fin,  and  spending  very  happy  days  with  my 
grandfather.  But  he  is  now  very  ill,  and  even 
should  we  have  better  news  of  him  to-day,  the 
thought  weighs  heavily  on  my  heart,  that  I 
must  take  leave  of  him  when  he  is  perhaps  on 
his  death-bed.  ...  I  have  just  tied  up  my 
last  package  of  plants,  and  there  lies  my  whole 
herbarium  in  order,  —  thirty  packages  in  all. 
For  this  I  have  to  thank  you,  dear  Alex.,  and 
it  gives  me  pleasure  to  tell  you  so  and  to  be 
reminded  of  it.  What  a  succession  of  glori- 
ous memories  came  up  to  me  as  I  turned  them 
over.  Free  from  all  disturbing  incidents,  I 
enjoyed  anew  our  life  together,  and  even 
more,  if  possible,  than  in  actual  experience. 
Every  talk,  every  walk,  was  present  to  me 
again,  and  in  reviewing  it  all  I  saw  how  our 
minds  had  been  drawn  to  each  other  in  an 
ever-strengthening  union.  In  you  I  see  my 
own  intellectual  development  reflected  as  in  a 
mirror,  for  to  you,  and  to  my  intercourse  with 
you,  I  owe  my  entrance  upon  this  path  of  the 
noblest  and  most  lasting  enjoyment.  It  is 
delightful  to  look  back  on  such  a  past  with 
the  future  so  bright  before  us.  ... 

Agassiz  now  returned  to  Munich  to  add  the 
title  of  Doctor  of  Medicine  to  that  of  Doctor 


120  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

of  Philosophy.  A  case  of  somnambulism, 
which  fell  under  his  observation  and  showed 
him  disease,  or,  at  least,  abnormal  action  of  the 
brain,  under  an  aspect  which  was  new  to  him, 
seems  to  have  given  a  fresh  impulse  to  his 
medical  studies,  and,  for  a  time,  he  was  inclined 
to  believe  that  the  vocation  which  had  thus  far 
been  to  him  one  of  necessity,  might  become 
one  of  preference.  But  the  naturalist  was 
stronger  than  the  physician.  During  this  very 
winter,  when  he  was  preparing  himself  with 
new  earnestness  for  his  profession,  a  collection 
of  fossil  fishes  was  put  into  his  hands  by  the 
Director  of  the  Museum  of  Munich.  It  will 
be  seen  with  what  ardor  he  threw  himself  into 
this  new  investigation.  His  work  on  the 
"Poissons  Fossiles,"  which  placed  him  in  a 
few  years  in  the  front  rank  of  European  sci- 
entific men,  took  form  at  once  in  his  fertile 
brain. 

TO   HIS   BROTHER. 

MUNICH,  January  18, 1830. 

.  .  .  My  resolve  to  study  medicine  is  now 
confirmed.  I  feel  all  that  may  be  done  to 
render  this  study  worthy  the  name  of  science, 
which  it  has  so  long  usurped.  Its  intimate 
alliance  with  the  natural  sciences  and  the  en- 
lightenment it  promises  me  regarding  them 


FINAL   STUDIES  IN  MUNICH.  121 

are  indeed  my  chief  incitements  to  persevere 
in  my  resolution.  In  order  to  gain  time,  and 
to  strike  while  the  iron  is  hot  (don't  be  afraid 
it  will  grow  cold ;  the  wood  which  feeds  the 
fire  is  good),  I  have  proposed  to  Euler,  with 
whom  I  am  very  intimate,  to  review  the  medi- 
cal course  with  me.  Since  then,  we  pass  all 
our  evenings  together,  and  rarely  separate  be- 
fore midnight,  —  reading  alternately  French 
and  German  medical  books.  In  this  way,  al- 
though I  devote  my  whole  day  to  my  own 
work  about  fishes,  I  hope  to  finish  my  pro- 
fessional studies  before  summer.  I  shall  then 
pass  my  examination  for  the  Doctorate  in  Ger- 
many, and  afterward  do  the  same  in  Lausanne. 
I  hope  that  this  decision  will  please  mama. 
My  character  and  conduct  are  the  pledge  of 
its  accomplishment. 

This,  then,  is  my  night-work.  I  have  still 
to  tell  you  what  I  do  by  day,  and  this  is  more 
important.  My  first  duty  is  to  complete  my 
Brazilian  Fishes.  To  be  sure,  it  is  only  an 
honorary  work,  but  it  must  be  finished,  and 
is  an  additional  means  of  making  subsequent 
works  profitable.  This  is  my  morning  occu- 
pation, and  I  am  sure  of  bringing  it  to  a  close 
about  Easter.  After  much  reflection,  I  have 
decided  that  the  best  way  to  turn  my  Fresh- 


122  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Water  Fishes  to  account,  is  to  finish  them  com- 
pletely before  offering  them  to  a  publisher.  All 
the  expenses  being  then  paid,  I  could  afford, 
if  the  first  publisher  should  not  feel  able  to 
take  them  on  my  own  terms,  to  keep  them  as 
a  safe  investment.  The  publisher  himself  see- 
ing the  material  finished,  and  being  sure  of 
bringing  it  out  as  a  complete  work,  the  value 
of  which  he  can  on  that  account  better  es- 
timate, will  be  more  disposed  to  accept  my 
proposals,  while  I,  on  my  side,  can  be  more 
exacting.  The  text  for  this  I  write  in  the 
afternoon.  My  greatest  difficulty  at  first  was 
the  execution  of  the  plates.  But  here,  also, 
my  good  star  has  served  me  wonderfully.  I 
told  you  that  beside  the  complete  drawings  of 
the  fishes  I  wanted  to  represent  their  skele- 
tons and  the  anatomy  of  the  soft  parts,  which 
has  never  been  done  for  this  class.  I  shall 
thereby  give  a  new  value  to  the  work,  and 
make  it  desirable  for  all  who  study  compara- 
tive anatomy.  The  puzzle  was  to  find  some 
one  who  was  prepared  to  draw  things  of  this 
kind;  but  I  have  made  the  luckiest  hit,  and 
am  more  than  satisfied.  My  former  artist  con- 
tinues to  draw  the  fishes,  a  second  draws  the 
skeletons  (one  who  had  already  been  engaged 
for  several  years  in  the  same  way,  for  a  work 


ILLUSTRATIONS  FOR  FUTURE   WORKS.     123 

upon  reptiles),  while  a  young  physician,  who 
is  an  admirable  draughtsman,  makes  my  ana- 
tomical figures.  For  my  share,  I  direct  their 
work  while  writing  the  text,  and  thus  the 
whole  advances  with  great  strides.  I  do  not, 
however,  stop  here.  Having  by  permission  of 
the  Director  of  the  Museum  one  of  the  finest 
collections  of  fossils  in  Germany  at  my  dis- 
position, and  being  also  allowed  to  take  the 
specimens  home  as  I  need  them,  I  have  under- 
taken to  publish  the  ichthyological  part  of 
the  collection.  Since  it  only  makes  the  differ- 
ence of  one  or  two  people  more  to  direct,  I 
have  these  specimens  also  drawn  at  the  same 
time.  Nowhere  so  well  as  here,  where  the 
Academy  of  Fine  Arts  brings  together  so  many 
draughtsmen,  could  I  have  the  same  facility 
for  completing  a  similar  work  ;  and  as  it  is  an 
entirely  new  branch,  in  which  no  one  has  as 
yet  done  anything  of  importance,  I  feel  sure 
of  success ;  the  more  so  because  Cuvier,  who 
alone  could  do  it  (for  the  simple  reason  that 
every  one  else  has  till  now  neglected  the  fishes), 
is  not  engaged  upon  it.  Add  to  this  that  just 
now  there  is  a  real  need  of  this  work  for  the 
determination  of  the  different  geological  for- 
mations. Once  before,  at  the  Heidelberg 
meeting,  it  had  been  proposed  to  me ;  the 


124  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

Director  of  the  Mines  at  Strasbourg,  M. 
Voltz,  even  offered  to  send  me  at  Munich  the 
whole  collection  of  fossil  fishes  from  their 
Museum.  I  did  not  speak  to  you  of  this  at 
the  time  because  it  would  have  been  of  no 
use.  But  now  that  I  have  it  in  my  power  to 
carry  out  the  project,  I  should  be  a  fool  to  let 
a  chance  escape  me  which  certainly  will  not 
present  itself  a  second  time  so  favorably.  It 
is  therefore  my  intention  to  prepare  a  general 
work  on  fossil  ichthyology.  I  hope,  if  I  can 
command  another  hundred  louis,  to  complete 
everything  of  which  I  have  spoken  before 
the  end  of  the  summer,  that  is  to  say,  in  July. 
I  shall  then  have  on  hand  two  works  which 
should  surely  be  worth  a  thousand  louis  to  me. 
This  is  a  low  estimate,  for  even  ephemeral 
pieces  and  literary  ventures  are  paid  at  this 
price.  You  can  easily  make  the  calculation. 
They  allow  three  louis  for  each  plate  with  the 
accompanying  text ;  my  fossils  will  have  about 
two  hundred  plates,  and  my  fresh-water  fishes 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty.  This  seems  to 
me  plausible.  .  .  . 

This  letter  evidently  made  a  favorable  im- 
pression on  the  business  heads  of  the  family 
at  Neuchatel,  for  it  is  forwarded  to  his  par- 


PECUNIARY  RISKS.  125 

ents,  with  these  words  from  his  brother  on 
the  last  sheet :  "  I  hasten,  dear  father,  to  send 
you  this  excellent  letter  from  my  brother, 
which  has  just  reached  me.  They  have  read 
it  here  with  interest,  and  Uncle  Francois 
Mayor,  especially,  sees  both  stability  and  a 
sound  basis  in  his  projects  and  enterprises." 

There  is  something  touching  and  almost 
amusing  in  Agassiz's  efforts  to  give  a  pruden- 
tial aspect  to  his  large  scientific  schemes.  He 
was  perfectly  sincere  in  this,  but  to  the  end 
of  his  life  he  skirted  the  edge  of  the  preci- 
pice, daring  all,  and  finding  in  himself  the 
power  to  justify  his  risks  by  his  successes. 
He  was  of  frugal  personal  habits;  at  this 
very  time,  when  he  was  keeping  two  or  three 
artists  on  his  slender  means,  he  made  his  own 
breakfast  in  his  room,  and  dined  for  a  few 
cents  a  day  at  the  cheapest  eating  houses.  But 
where  science  was  concerned  the  only  econ- 
omy he  recognized,  either  in  youth  or  old  age, 
was  that  of  an  expenditure  as  bold  as  it  was 
carefully  considered. 

In  the  above  letter  to  his  brother  we  have 
the  story  of  his  work  during  the  whole  winter 
of  1830.  That  his  medical  studies  did  not 
suffer  from  the  fact  that,  in  conjunction  with 
them,  he  was  carrying  on  his  two  great  works 


126  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

on  the  living  and  the  dead  world  of  fishes 
may  be  inferred  from  the  following  account 
of  his  medical  theses.  It  was  written  after 
his  death,  to  his  son  Alexander  Agassiz,  by 
Professor  von  Siebold,  now  Director  of  the 
Museum  in  the  University  of  Munich.  "  How 
earnestly  Agassiz  devoted  himself  to  the  study 
of  medicine  is  shown  by  the  theses  (seventy- 
four  in  number),  a  list  of  which  was  printed, 
according  to  the  prescribed  rule  and  custom, 
with  his  <  Einladung.'  I  am  astonished  at  the 
great  number  of  these.  The  subjects  are  an- 
atomical, pathological,  surgical,  obstetrical ; 
they  are  inquiries  into  materia  medica,  medi- 
cina  forensis,  and  the  relation  of  botany  to 
these  topics.  One  of  them  interested  me  es- 
pecially. It  read  as  follows.  '  Foemina  hu- 
mana  superior  mare/  I  would  gladly  have 
known  how  your  father  interpreted  that  sen- 
tence. Last  fall  (1873)  I  wrote  him  a  letter, 
the  last  I  ever  addressed  to  him,  questioning 
him  about  this  very  subject.  That  letter,  alas  ! 
remained  unanswered." 

In  a  letter  to  his  brother  just  before  taking 
his  degree,  Agassiz  says :  "  I  am  now  deter- 
mined to  pursue  medicine  and  natural  history 
side  by  side.  Thank  you,  with  all  my  heart, 
for  your  disinterested  offer,  but  I  shall  not 


ARRANGEMENTS    WITH  PUBLISHER.      127 

need  it,  for  I  am  going  on  well  with  my  pub- 
lisher, M.  Cotta,  of  Stuttgart.  I  have  great 
hope  that  he  will  accept  my  works,  since  he 
has  desired  that  they  should  be  forwarded  to 
him  for  examination.  I  have  sent  him  the 
whole,  and  I  feel  very  sure  he  will  swallow  the 
pill.  My  conditions  would  be  the  only  cause 
of  delay,  but  I  hope  he  will  agree  to  them. 
For  the  fresh- water  fishes  and  the  fossils  to- 
gether I  have  asked  twenty  thousand  Swiss 
francs.  Should  he  not  consent  to  this,  I  shall 
apply  to  another  publisher." 

On  the  3d  of  April  he  received  his  degree 
of  Doctor  of  Medicine.  A  day  or  two  later 
he  writes  to  his  mother  that  her  great  desire 
for  him  is  accomplished. 

TO   HIS   MOTHER. 

MUNICH,  April,  1830. 

.  .  .  My  letter  to-day  must  be  to  you,  for 
to  you  I  owe  it  that  I  have  undertaken  the 
work  just  completed,  and  I  write  to  thank  you 
for  having  encouraged  my  zeal.  I  am  very 
sure  that  no  letter  from  me  has  ever  given 
you  greater  pleasure  than  this  one  will  bring ; 
and  I  can  truly  say,  on  my  own  part,  that  I 
have  never  written  one  with  greater  satisfac- 
tion. Yesterday  I  finished  my  medical  ex- 


128  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

animation,  after  having  satisfied  every  require- 
ment of  the  Faculty.  .  .  .  The  whole  cere- 
mony lasted  nine  days.  At  the  close,  while 
they  considered  my  case,  I  was  sent  out  of 
the  room.  On  my  return,  the  Dean  said  to 
me,  "  The  Faculty  have  been  very  much " 
(emphasized)  "  pleased  with  your  answers ; 
they  congratulate  themselves  on  being  able 
to  give  the  diploma  to  a  young  man  who  has 
already  acquired  so  honorable  a  reputation. 
On  Saturday,  after  having  argued  your  thesis, 
you  will  receive  your  degree,  in  the  Academic 
Hall,  from  the  Hector  of  the  University."  The 
Rector  then  added  that  he  should  look  upon 
it  as  the  brightest  moment  of  his  Rectorship 
when  he  conferred  upon  me  the  title  I  had  so 
well  merited.  Next  Saturday,  then,  at  the 
very  time  you  receive  this  letter,  at  ten  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  the  discussion  will  have  begun, 
and  at  twelve  I  shall  have  my  degree.  Dear 
Mother,  dismiss  all  anxiety  about  me.  You 
see  I  am  as  good  as  my  word.  .  .  .  Write 
soon ;  in  a  few  days  I  go  to  Vienna  for  some 
months.  .  .  . 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  MOTHER.    129 


FROM    HIS   MOTHER. 


ORBE,  April  7, 1830. 

I  cannot  thank  you  enough,  my  dear  Louis, 
for  the  happiness  you  have  given  me  in  com- 
pleting your  medical  examinations,  and  thus 
securing  to  yourself  a  career  as  safe  as  it  is 
honorable.  It  is  a  laurel  added  to  those  you 
have  already  won ;  in  my  eyes  the  most  pre- 
cious of  all.  You  have  for  my  sake  gone 
through  a  long  and  arduous  task ;  were  it 
in  my  power  I  would  gladly  reward  you,  but 
I  cannot  even  say  that  I  love  you  the  more 
for  it,  because  that  is  impossible.  My  anxious 
solicitude  for  your  future  is  a  proof  of  my 
ardent  affection  for  you ;  only  one  thing  was 
wanting  to  make  me  the  happiest  of  mothers, 
and  this,  my  Louis,  you  have  just  given  me. 
May  God  reward  you  by  giving  you  all  possi- 
ble success  in  the  care  of  your  fellow-beings. 
May  the  benedictions  which  honor  the  memory 
of  a  good  physician  be  your  portion,  as  they 
have  been  in  the  highest  degree  that  of  your 
grandfather.  Why  can  he  not  be  here  to 
share  my  happiness  to-day  in  seeing  my  Louis 
a  medical  graduate !  .  .  . 

Agassiz  was  recalled  from  Vienna  in  less 


VOL.  I. 


130  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

than  two  months  by  the  arrival  in  Munich  of 
his  publisher,  M.  Cotta,  a  personal  interview 
with  whom  seemed  to  him  important.  The 
only  letter  preserved  from  the  Vienna  visit 
shows  that  his  short  stay  there  was  full  of  in- 
terest and  instruction. 


TO   HIS   FATHER. 


VIENNA,  May  11,  1830. 

.  .  .  Since  my  arrival  I  have  seen  so  much 
that  I  hardly  know  where  to  begin  my  narra- 
tive, and  what  I  have  seen  has  suggested  re- 
flections on  many  grave  subjects,  of  a  kind  I 
had  hardly  expected  to  make  here.  Nowhere 
have  I  seen  establishments  on  broader  or  more 
stately  foundations,  nor  do  I  believe  that  any- 
where are  foreigners  allowed  more  liberal  use 
of  like  institutions.  I  speak  of  the  university, 
the  hospitals,  libraries,  and  collections  of  all 
sorts.  Neither  have  I  seen  anywhere  else  such 
fine  churches,  and  I  have  more  than  once  felt 
the  difference  between  worshiping  within  bare 
walls,  and  in  buildings  more  worthy  of  devo- 
tional purposes.  In  one  word,  I  should  be 
enchanted  with  my  stay  in  Vienna  if  I  could 
be  free  from  the  idea  that  I  am  always  sur- 
rounded by  an  imperceptible  net,  ready  to 
close  upon  me  at  the  slightest  signal.  With 


VISIT  TO  VIENNA.  131 

this  exception,  the  only  discomfort  to  a  for- 
eigner here,  if  he  is  unaccustomed  to  it,  is 
that  of  being  obliged  to  abstain  from  all  crit- 
icism of  affairs  in  public  places ;  still  more 
must  he  avoid  commenting  upon  persons.  I 
am  especiaUy  satisfied  with  my  visit  from  a 
scientific  point  of  view.  I  have  learned,  and 
am  still  learning,  the  care  of  the  eyes  and  how 
to  operate  upon  them ;  as  to  medicine,  the  phy- 
sicians, however  good,  do  not  surpass  those  I 
have  already  known ;  and  as  I  do  not  believe 
it  important  that  a  young  physician  should 
familiarize  himself  with  a  great  variety  of 
curative  methods,  I  try  to  observe  carefully 
the  patient  and  his  disease  rather  than  to  re- 
member the  medicaments  applied  in  special 
cases.  Surgery  and  midwifery  are  poorly  pro- 
vided, but  one  has  a  chance  to  see  many  inter- 
esting cases. 

During  the  last  fortnight  I  have  visited  the 
collection  of  natural  history  often,  generally 
in  the  afternoon.  To  tell  you  how  I  have 
been  expected  there  from  the  moment  I  was 
known  to  be  here,  and  how  I  was  received  on 
my  first  visit,  and  have  been  feted  since  (as 
Ichthyologus  primus  seculi,  —  so  they  say), 
would,  perhaps,  tire  you  and  might  seem  ego- 
tistical in  me,  neither  of  which  do  I  desire. 


132  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

But  it  will  not  be  indifferent  to  you  to  know 
that  Cotta  is  disposed  to  accept  my  Fishes. 
He  has  been  at  Munich  for  some  days,  and 
Schimper  has  been  talking  with  him,  and  has 
advanced  matters  more  by  a  few  words  than 
I  had  been  able  to  do  by  much  writing.  For 
this  reason  I  intend  returning  soon  to  Munich 
to  complete  the  business,  since  Cotta  is  to  be 
there  several  weeks  longer.  Thus  I  shall  have 
reached  my  aim,  and  be  provided  from  this 
autumn  onward  with  an  independent  mainte- 
nance. I  was  often  very  anxious  this  past 
winter,  in  my  uncertainty  about  the  means 
of  finally  making  good  such  large  outlays. 
If,  however,  Cotta  makes  no  other  condition 
than  that  of  a  certain  number  of  subscrib- 
ers, I  shall  be  sure  of  them  in  six  months. 
You  may  thus  regard  what  I  have  done  as  a 
speculation  happily  concluded,  and  one  which 
places  me  at  the  summit  of  my  desires,  for  it 
leaves  me  free,  at  last,  to  work  upon  my  pro- 
jects. .  .  . 

A  letter  to  his  brother,  of  the  29th  of  May, 
just  after  his  return  to  Munich,  gives  a  retro- 
spect of  the  Viennese  visit,  including  the  per- 
sonal details  which  he  had  hesitated  to  write 
to  his  father.  They  are  important  as  showing 


RECOGNITION  AMONG  SCIENTIFIC  MEN.    133 

the  position  he  already,  at  twenty-three  years 
of  age,  held  among  scientific  men.  "  Every- 
thing," he  says,  "  was  open  to  me  as  a  for- 
eigner, and  to  my  great  surprise  I  was  received 
as  an  associate  already  known.  Was  it  not 
gratifying  to  go  to  Vienna  with  no  recom- 
mendation whatever,  and  to  be  welcomed  and 
sought  by  all  the  scientific  men,  and  afterwards 
presented  and  introduced  everywhere  ?  In  the 
Museum,  not  only  were  the  rooms  opened  for 
me  when  I  pleased,  but  also  the  cases,  and  even 
the  jars,  so  that  I  could  take  out  whatever  I 
needed  for  examination.  At  the  hospital  sev- 
eral professors  carried  their  kindness  so  far,  as 
to  invite  me  to  accompany  them  in  their  pri- 
vate visits.  You  may  fancy  whether  I  profited 
by  all  this,  and  how  many  things  I  saw."  Af- 
ter some  account  of  his  business  arrangements 
with  Gotta,  he  adds  :  "  Meantime,  be  at  ease 
about  me.  I  have  strings  enough  to  my  bow, 
and  need  not  feel  anxious  about  the  future. 
What  troubles  me  is  that  the  thing  I  most  de- 
sire seems  to  me,  at  least  for  the  present,  far- 
thest from  my  reach,  —  namely,  the  direction 
of  a  great  Museum.  When  I  have  finished 
with  Cotta  I  shall  begin  to  pack  my  effects, 
and  shall  hope  to  turn  my  face  homeward 
somewhere  about  the  end  of  August.  I  can 


134  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

hardly  leave  earlier,  because,  for  the  sake  o£ 
practice,  I  have  begun  to  deliver  zoological 
lectures,  open  to  all  who  like  to  attend,  and 
I  want  to  complete  the  course  before  my  de- 
parture. I  lecture  without  even  an  outline  or 
headings  before  me,  but  this  requires  prepara- 
tion. You  see  I  do  not  lose  my  time." 

The  next  home  letter  announces  an  impor- 
tant change  in  the  family  affairs.  His  father 
had  been  called  from  his  parish  at  Orbe  to  that 
of  Concise,  a  small  town  situated  on  the  south- 
western shore  of  the  Lake  of  Neuchatel. 

FROM   HIS    MOTHER. 

ORBE,  July,  1830. 

.  .  .  Since  your  father  wrote  you  on  the 
4th  of  June,  dear  Louis,  we  have  had  no  news 
from  you,  and  therefore  infer  that  you  are 
working  with  especial  zeal  to  wind  up  your 
affairs  in  Germany  and  come  home  as  soon  as 
possible.  Whatever  haste  you  make,  however, 
you  will  not  find  us  here.  Four  days  ago 
your  father  became  pastor  of  Concise,  and  yes- 
terday we  went  to  visit  our  new  home.  Noth- 
ing can  be  prettier,  and  by  all  who  know  the 
place  it  is  considered  the  most  desirable  posi- 
tion in  the  canton.  There  is  a  vineyard,  a 
fine  orchard  filled  with  fruit-trees  in  full  bear- 


REMOVAL  OF  HIS  FATHER  TO  CONCISE.     135 

ing,  and  an  excellent  kitchen  garden.  A 
never-failing  spring  gushes  from  a  grotto,  and 
within  fifty  steps  of  the  house  is  a  pretty 
winding  stream  with  a  walk  along  the  bank, 
bordered  by  shrubbery,  and  furnished  here 
and  there  with  benches,  the  whole  disposed 
with  much  care  and  taste.  The  house  also  is 
very  well  arranged.  All  the  rooms  look  out 
upon  the  lake,  lying  hardly  a  gunshot  from 
the  windows.  There  are  a  parlor  and  a  din- 
ing-room on  the  first  floor,  beside  two  smaller 
rooms ;  and  on  the  same  floor  two  doors  lead 
out  into  the  flower  garden.  The  kitchen  is 
small,  and  on  one  side  is  a  pretty  ground  where 
we  can  dine  in  the  open  air  in  summer.  The 
distribution  of  rooms  in  the  upper  story  is  the 
same,  with  a  large  additional  room  for  the  ac- 
commodation of  your  father's  catechumens. 
A  jasmine  vine  drapes  the  front  of  the  house 
and  climbs  to  the  very  roof.  .  .  . 

To  this  quiet  pretty  parsonage  Madame 
Agassiz  became  much  attached.  Her  tranquil 
life  is  well  described  in  a  letter  written  many 
years  afterward  by  one  of  her  daughters. 
"  Here  mama  returned  to  her  spinning-wheel 
with  new  ardor.  It  was  a  work  she  much 
liked,  and  in  which  she  was  very  skillful.  In 


136  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

former  times  at  grandpapa's  every  woman  in 
the  house,  whether  mistress  or  maid,  had  her 
wheel,  and  the  young  ladies  were  accustomed 
to  spin  and  make  up  their  own  trousseaus. 
Later,  mama  continued  her  spinning  for  her 
children,  and  even  for  her  grandchildren.  We 
all  preserve  as  a  precious  souvenir,  table  linen 
of  her  making.  We  delighted  to  see  her 
at  her  wheel,  she  was  so  graceful,  and  the 
thread  of  her  thought  seemed  to  follow,  so  to 
speak,  the  fine  and  delicate  thread  of  her  work 
as  it  unwound  itself  under  her  touch  from  the 
distaff." 

Agassiz  was  detained  by  his  publishing  ar- 
rangements and  his  work  longer  than  he  had 
expected,  and  November  was  already  advanced 
before  his  preparations  for  leaving  Munich 
were  completed. 

TO   HIS    PARENTS. 

MUNICH,  November  9,  1830. 

.  .  .  According  to  your  wish  [this  refers 
to  a  suggestion  about  a  fellow-student  in  a 
previous  letter]  I  shall  not  bring  any  friend 
with  me.  I  long  to  enjoy  the  pleasure  of 
family  life.  I  shall,  however,  be  accompa- 
nied by  one  person,  for  whom  I  should  like 
to  make  suitable  arrangements.  He  is  the 


PREPARING  FOR  HIS  RETURN.         137 

artist  who  makes  all  my  drawings.  If  there 
is  no  room  for  him  in  the  house  he  can  be 
lodged  elsewhere ;  but  I  wish  you  could  give 
me  the  use  of  a  well  -  lighted  room,  where  I 

O  ' 

could  work  and  he  could  draw  at  my  side 
through  the  day.  Do  not  be  frightened;  he 
is  not  at  my  charge ;  but  it  would  be  a  great 
advantage  to  me  if  I  could  have  him  in  the 
house.  As  I  do  not  want  to  lose  time  in  the 
mechanical  part  of  my  work,  I  would  beg 
papa  to  engage  for  me  some  handy  boy,  fif- 
teen years  old  or  so,  whom  I  could  employ 
in  cleaning  skeletons  and  the  like.  Finally, 
you  will  receive  several  boxes  for  me ;  leave 
them  unopened  till  I  come,  without  even  pay- 
ing the  freight  upon  them,  —  the  most  unsat- 
isfactory of  all  expenses ;  —  and  I  do  not  wish 
you  to  have  an  unpleasant  association  with  my 
collections. 

My  affairs  are  all  in  order  with  Cotta,  and 
I  have  even  concluded  the  arrangement  more 
advantageously  than  I  had  dared  to  hope,  — 
a  thousand  louis,  six  hundred  payable  on  the 
publication  of  the  first  number,  and  four  hun- 
dred in  installments,  as  the  publication  goes 
on.  If  I  had  not  been  in  haste  to  close  the 
matter  in  order  to  secure  myself  against  all 
doubt,  I  might  have  done  even  better.  But  I 


138  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

hope  I  have  reconciled  you  thereby  to  Nat- 
ural History.  What  remains  to  be  done  will 
be  the  work  of  less  than  half  a  year,  during 
which  I  wish  also  to  get  together  the  materials 
for  my  second  work,  on  the  fossils.  Of  that 
I  have  already  spoken  with  my  publisher,  and 
he  will  take  it  on  more  favorable  conditions 
than  I  could  have  dictated.  Do  your  best  to 
find  me  subscribers,  that  we  may  soon  make 
our  typographical  arrangements.  .  .  . 

His  father's  answer,  full  of  fun  as  it  is, 
shows,  nevertheless,  that  the  prospect  of  do- 
mesticating not  only  the  naturalist  and  his 
collections,  but  artist  and  assistant  also,  was 
rather  startling. 

FROM   HIS   FATHER. 

CONCISE,  November- 16,  1830. 

.  .  .  You  speak  of  Christmas  as  the  mo- 
ment of  your  arrival ;  let  us  call  it  the  New 
Year.  You  will  naturally  pass  some  days  at 
Neuchatel  to  be  with  your  brother,  to  see  the 
Messrs.  Coulon,  etc.  ;  from  there  to  Cudrefin 
for  a  look  at  your  collection ;  then  to  Con- 
cise, then  to  Montagny,  Orbe,  Lausanne, 
Geneva,  etc. :  M.  le  Docteur  will  be  claimed 
and  feted  by  all  in  turn.  And  during  all 


LETTER  FROM  HIS  FATHER.          139 

these  indispensable  excursions,  for  which,  to 
be  within  bounds,  I  allow  a  month  at  least, 
it  is  as  clear  as  daylight  that  regular  work 
must  be  set  aside,  if,  indeed,  the  time  be  not 
wholly  lost.  Now,  for  Heaven's  sake,  what 
will  you  do,  or  rather  what  shall  we  do,  with 
your  painter,  in  this  interval  employed  by  you 
elsewhere.  Neither  is  this  all.  Though  the 
date  of  Cecile's  marriage  is  not  fixed,  it  is 
more  than  likely  to  take  place  in  January, 
so  that  you  will  be  here  for  the  wedding.  If 
you  will  recollect  the  overturning  of  the  pa- 
ternal mansion  when  your  outfit  was  prepar- 
ing for  Bienne,  Zurich,  and  other  places,  you 
can  form  an  idea  of  the  state  of  our  rooms 
above  and  below,  large  and  small,  when  the 
work  of  the  trousseau  begins.  Where,  in 
Heaven's  name,  will  you  stow  away  a  painter 
and  an  assistant  in  the  midst  of  half  a  brigade 
of  dress-makers,  seamstresses,  lace-makers,  and 
milliners,  without  counting  the  accompanying 
train  of  friends  ?  Where  would  you,  or  where 
could  you,  put  under  shelter  your  possessions 
(I  dare  not  undertake  to  enumerate  them), 
among  all  the  taffetas  and  brocades,  linens, 
muslin,  tulles,  laces,  etc.  ?  But  what  am  I  say- 
ing? I  doubt  if  these  names  are  still  in  ex- 
istence, for  quite  other  appellations  are  sound- 


140  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

ing  in  my  ears,  each  one  of  which,  to  the 
number  of  some  hundred,  signifies  at  least 
twenty  yards  in  width,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
length.  For  my  part,  I  have  already,  notwith- 
standing the  approach  of  winter,  put  up  a 
big  nail  in  the  garret,  on  which  to  hang  my 
bands  and  surplice.  Listen,  then,  to  the  con- 
clusion of  your  father.  Give  all  possible  care 
to  your  affairs  in  Munich,  put  them  in  per- 
fect order,  leave  nothing  to  be  done,  and  leave 
nothing  behind  except  the  painter.  You  can 
call  him  in  from  here,  whenever  you  think 
you  can  make  use  of  him. 

TO    HIS    PARENTS. 

MUNICH,  November  26,  1830. 

.  .  .  When  you  receive  this  I  shall  be  no 
longer  in  Munich ;  by  means  of  a  last  draft 
on  M.  Eichthal  I  have  settled  with  every  one, 
and  I  hope  to  leave  the  day  after  to-morrow. 
I  fully  recognize  the  justice  of  your  observa- 
tions, my  dear  father,  but  as  you  start  from  a 
mistaken  point  of  view,  they  do  not  coincide 
altogether  with  existing  circumstances.  I  in- 
tend to  stay  with  you  until  the  approach  of 
summer,  not  only  with  the  aim  of  working 
upon  the  text  of  my  book,  but  chiefly  in  order 
to  take  advantage  of  all  the  fossil  collections 


RELATIONS   WITH  HIS  ARTIST.        141 

in  Switzerland.  For  that  purpose  I  positively 
need  a  draughtsman,  who,  thanks  to  my  pub- 
lisher, is  not  in  my  pay,  and  who  must  accom- 
pany me  in  future  wherever  I  go.  Since 
there  is  no  room  at  home,  please  see  how  he 
can  be  lodged  in  the  neighborhood.  I  have, 
at  the  utmost,  to  glance  each  day  at  what 
he  has  done.  I  can  even  give  him  work  for 
several  weeks  in  which  my  presence  would  be 
unnecessary.  If  there  is  a  considerable  col- 
lection of  fossils  at  Zurich,  I  shall  leave  him 
there  till  he.  has  finished  his  work,  and  then 
he  will  rejoin  me ;  all  that  depends  upon  cir- 
cumstances. In  any  case  he  must  not  be  a 
charge  to  you,  still  less  interfere  with  our 
family  privacy.  That  I  may  spend  all  my 
time  with  you,  I  shall  at  present  bring  with 
me  nothing  that  is  not  absolutely  necessary. 
We  shall  see  later  where  I  shall  place  my 
museum.  As  to  visits,  they  are  not  to  be 
thought  of  until  the  spring.  I  could  not  bear 
the  idea  of  interruption  before  the  first  num- 
ber of  my  "  Fishes  "  is  finished. 

The  artist  in  question  was  Mr.  Dinkel.  His 
relations  with  the  family  became  of  a  truly 
friendly  character.  The  connection  between 
him  and  Agassiz,  most  honorable  to  both  par- 


142  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

ties,  lasted  for  sixteen  years,  and  was  then  only 
interrupted  by  the  departure  of  Agassiz  for 
America.  During  this  whole  period  Mr.  Din- 
kel  was  occupied  as  his  draughtsman,  living 
sometimes  in  Paris,  sometimes  in  England, 
sometimes  in  Switzerland,  wherever,  in  short, 
there  were  specimens  to  be  drawn.  In  a  pri- 
vate letter,  written  long  afterward,  he  says, 
in  speaking  of  the  break  in  their  intercourse 
caused  by  Agassiz's  removal  to  America : 
"  For  a  long  time  I  felt  unhappy  at  that 
separation.  ...  He  was  a  kind,  noble-hearted 
friend ;  he  was  very  benevolent,* and  if  he  had 
possessed  millions  of  money  he  would  have 
spent  them  for  his  researches  in  science,  and 
have  done  good  to  his  fellow-creatures  as 
much  as  possible." 

Some  passages  from  Braun's  letters  com- 
plete the  chapter  of  these  years  in  Munich, 
so  rich  in  purpose  and  in  experience,  the  pre- 
lude, as  it  were,  to  the  intellectual  life  of  the 
two  friends  who  had  entered  upon  them  to- 
gether. These  extracts  show  how  seriously, 
not  without  a  certain  sadness,  they  near  the 
end. 


LAST  DAYS  AT  MUNICH.  143 

BBAUN   TO   HIS   FATHER. 

MUNICH,  November  7, 1830. 

Were  I  to  leave  Munich  now,  I  must  sepa- 
rate myself  from  Agassiz  and  Schimper,  which 
would  be  neither  agreeable  nor  advantageous 
for  me,  nor  would  it  be  friendly  toward  them. 
We  will  not  shorten  the  time,  already  too 
scantly  measured,  which  we  may  still  spend 
so  quietly,  so  wholly  by  ourselves,  but  rather, 
as  long  as  it  lasts,  make  the  best  use  of  it  in 
a  mutual  exchange  of  what  we  have  learned, 
trying  to  encourage  each  other  in  the  right 
path,  and  drawing  more  closely  together  for 
our  whole  life  to  come.  Agassiz  is  to  stay  till 
the  end  of  the  month ;  during  this  time  he 
will  give  us  lectures  in  anatomy,  and  I  shall 
learn  a  good  deal  of  zoology.  Beside  all  this 
one  thing  is  certain ;  namely,  that  we  can  re- 
view our  medical  work  much  more  quietly  and 
uninterruptedly  here  than  in  Carlsruhe.  Add 
to  this,  the  advantage  we  enjoy  here  of  visit- 
ing the  hospitals.  .  .  .  The  time  passes  delight- 
fully with  us  of  late,  for  Agassiz  has  received 
several  baskets  of  books  from  Cotta,  among 
others,  Schiller's  and  Goethe's  complete  works, 
the  Conversations-Lexicon,  medical  works,  and 
works  on  natural  history.  How  many  books 


144  LOUIS  AGASSJZ. 

a  man  may  receive  in  return  for  writing  only 
one  !  They  are,  of  course,  deducted  from  his 
share  of  the  profits.  Yesterday  we  did  noth- 
ing but  read  Goethe  the  whole  day. 

A  brief  account  of  Agassiz's  university  life, 
dictated  by  himself,  may  fitly  close  the  record 
of  this  period.  He  was  often  urged  to  put  to- 
gether a  few  reminiscences  of  his  life,  but  he 
lived  so  intensely  in  the  present,  every  day 
bringing  its  full  task,  that  he  had  little  time 
for  retrospect,  and  this  sketch  remained  a  frag- 
ment. It  includes  some  facts  already  told,  but 
is  given  almost  verbatim,  because  it  forms  a 
sort  of  summary  of  his  intellectual  develop- 
ment up  to  this  date. 

"  I  am  conscious  that  at  successive  periods  of 
my  life  I  have  employed  very  different  means 
and  followed  very  different  systems  of  study. 
I  may,  therefore,  be  allowed  to  offer  the  result 
of  my  experience  as  a  contribution  toward  the 
building  up  of  a  sound  method  for  the  promo- 
tion of  the  study  of  nature. 

"  At  first,  when  a  mere  boy,  twelve  years  of 
age,  I  did  what  most  beginners  do.  I  picked 
up  whatever  I  could  lay  my  hands  on,  and 
tried,  by  such  books  and  authorities  as  I  had 
at  my  command,  to  find  the  names  of  these 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.         145 

objects.  My  highest  ambition,  at  that  time, 
was  to  be  able  to  designate  the  plants  and 
animals  of  my  native  country  correctly  by  a 
Latin  name,  and  to  extend  gradually  a  similar 
knowledge  in  its  application  to  the  productions 
of  other  countries.  This  seemed  to  me,  in 
those  days,  the  legitimate  aim  and  proper  work 
of  a  naturalist.  I  still  possess  manuscript 
volumes  in  which  I  entered  the  names  of  all 
the  animals  and  plants  with  which  I  became 
acquainted,  and  I  well  remember  that  I  then 
ardently  hoped  to  acquire  the  same  superficial 
familiarity  with  the  whole  creation.  I  did  not 
then  know  how  much  more  important  it  is 
to  the  naturalist  to  understand  the  structure 
of  a  few  animals,  than  to  command  the  whole 
field  of  scientific  nomenclature.  Since  I  have 
become  a  teacher,  and  have  watched  the  prog- 
ress of  students,  I  have  seen  that  they  all 
begin  in  the  same  way ;  but  how  many  have 
grown  old  in  the  pursuit,  without  ever  rising 
to  any  higher  conception  of  the  study  of  na- 
ture, spending  their  life  in  the  determination 
of  species,  and  in  extending  scientific  termi- 
nology !  Long  before  I  went  to  the  univer- 
sity, and  before  I  began  to  study  natural 
history  under  the  guidance  of  men  who  were 
masters  in  the  science  during  the  early  part  of 

VOL.  I.  10 


146  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

this  century,  I  perceived  that  while  nomen- 
clature and  classification,  as  then  understood, 
formed  an  important  part  of  the  study,  being, 
in  fact,  its  technical  language,  the  study  of 
living  beings  in  their  natural  element  was  of 
infinitely  greater  value.  At  that  age,  namely, 
about  fifteen,  I  spent  most  of  the  time  I  could 
spare  from  classical  and  mathematical  studies 
in  hunting  the  neighboring  woods  and  mead- 
ows for  birds,  insects,  and  land  and  fresh- 
water shells.  My  room  became  a  little  mena- 
gerie, while  the  stone  basin  under  the  fountain 
in  our  yard  was  my  reservoir  for  all  the  fishes 
I  could  catch.  Indeed,  collecting,  fishing, 
and  raising  caterpillars,  from  which  I  reared 
fresh,  beautiful  butterflies,  were  then  my  chief 
pastimes.  What  I  know  of  the  habits  of  the 
fresh-water  fishes  of  Central  Europe  I  mostly 
learned  at  that  time  ;  and  I  may  add,  that 
when  afterward  I  obtained  access  to  a  large 
library  and  could  consult  the  works  of  Bloch 
and  Lacepede,  the  only  extensive  works  on 
fishes  then  in  existence,  I  wondered  that  they 
contained  so  little  about  their  habits,  natural 
attitudes,  and  mode  of  action  with  which  I 
was  so  familiar. 

"  The  first  course  of  lectures  on  zoology  I 
attended  was  given  in  Lausanne  in  1823.     It 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.        147 

consisted  chiefly  of  extracts  from  Cuvier's 
'Regne  Animal,'  and  from  Lamarck's  'Ani- 
maux  sans  Vertebres.'  I  now  became  aware, 
for  the  first  time,  that  the  learned  differ  in 
their  classifications.  With  this  discovery,  an 
immense  field  of  study  opened  before  me,  and 
I  longed  for  some  knowledge  of  anatomy,  that 
I  might  see  for  myself  where  the  truth  was. 
During  two  years  spent  in  the  Medical  School 
of  Zurich,  I  applied  myself  exclusively  to  the 
study  of  anatomy,  physiology,  and  zoology, 
under  the  guidance  of  Professors  Schinz  and 
Hirzel.  My  inability  to  buy  books  was,  per- 
haps, not  so  great  a  misfortune  as  it  seemed  to 
me ;  at  least,  it  saved  me  from  too  great  de- 
pendence on  written  authority.  I  spent  all 
my  time  in  dissecting  animals  and  in  studying 
human  anatomy,  not  forgetting  my  favorite 
amusements  of  fishing  and  collecting.  I  was 
always  surrounded  with  pets,  and  had  at  this 
time  some  forty  birds  flying  about  my  study, 
with  no  other  home  than  a  large  pine-tree  in 
the  corner.  I  still  remember  my  grief  when  a 
visitor,  entering  suddenly,  caught  one  of  my 
little  favorites  between  the  floor  and  the  door, 
and  he  was  killed  before  I  could  extricate  him. 
Professor  Schinz's  private  collection  of  birds 
was  my  daily  resort,  and  I  then  described  every 


148  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

bird  it  contained,  as  I  could  not  afford  to  buy 
even  a  text-book  of  ornithology.  I  also  copied 
with  my  own  hand,  having  no  means  of  pur- 
chasing the  work,  two  volumes  of  Lamarck's 
(  Animaux  sans  Vertebres,'  and  my  dear 
brother  copied  another  half  volume  for  me.  I 
finally  learned  that  the  study  of  the  tilings 
themselves  was  far  more  attractive  than  the 
books  I  so  much  coveted ;  and  when,  at  last, 
large  libraries  became  accessible  to  me,  I  usu- 
ally contented  myself  with  turning  over  the 
leaves  of  the  volumes  on  natural  history,  look- 
ing at  the  illustrations,  and  recording  the  ti- 
tles of  the  works,  that  I  might  readily  con- 
sult them  for  identification  of  such  objects  as 
I  should  have  an  opportunity  of  examining  in 
nature. 

"  After  spending  in  this  way  two  years  in 
Zurich,  I  was  attracted  to  Heidelberg  by  the 
great  reputation  of  its  celebrated  teachers, 
Tiedemann,  Leuckart,  Bronn,  and  others.  It 
is  true  that  I  was  still  obliged  to  give  up  a 
part  of  my  time  to  the  study  of  medicine,  but 
while  advancing  in  my  professional  course  by  a 
steady  application  to  anatomy  and  physiology, 
I  attended  the  lectures  of  Leuckart  in  zoology, 
and  those  of  Bronn  in  paleontology.  The  pub- 
lication of  Goldf uss's  great  work  on  the  fossils 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.        149 

of  Germany  was  just  then  beginning,  and  it 
opened  a  new  world  to  me.  Familiar  as  I  was 
with  Cuvier's  (  Regne  Animal/  I  had  not  then 
seen  his  '  Researches  on  Fossil  Remains/ 
and  the  study  of  fossils  seemed  to  me  only  an 
extension  of  the  field  of  zoology.  I  had  no 
idea  of  its  direct  connection  with  geology,  or 
of  its  bearing  on  the  problem  of  the  successive 
introduction  of  animals  on  the  earth.  I  had 
never  thought  of  the  larger  and  more  philo- 
sophical view  of  nature  as  one  great  world, 
but  considered  the  study  of  animals  only  as  it 
was  taught  by  descriptive  zoology  in  those 
days.  At  about  this  time,  however,  I  made 
the  acquaintance  of  two  young  botanists, 
Braun  and  Schimper,  both  of  whom  have 
since  become  distinguished  in  the  annals  of 
science.  Botany  had  in  those  days  received  a 
new  impulse  from  the  great  conceptions  of 
Goethe.  The  metamorphosis  of  plants  was 
the  chief  study  of  my  friends,  and  I  could  not 
but  feel  that  descriptive  zoology  had  not 
spoken  the  last  word  in  our  science,  and  that 
grand  generalizations,  such  as  were  opening 
upon  botanists,  must  be  preparing  for  zoolo- 
gists also.  Intimate  contact  with  German 
students  made  me  feel  that  I  had  neglected 
my  philosophical  education ;  and  when,  in  the 


150  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

year  1827,  the  new  University  of  Munich 
opened,  with  Schelling  as  professor  of  philos- 
ophy, Oken,  Schubert,  and  Wagler  as  pro- 
fessors of  zoology,  Dollinger  as  professor  of 
anatomy  and  physiology,  Martins  and  Zucca- 
rini  as  professors  of  botany,  Fuchs  and  Kobell 
as  professors  of  mineralogy,  I  determined  to 
go  there  with  my  two  friends  and  drink  new 
draughts  of  knowledge.  During  the  years  I 
passed  at  Munich  I  devoted  myself  almost  ex- 
clusively to  the  different  branches  of  natural 
science,  neglecting  more  and  more  my  medical 
studies,  because  I  began  to  feel  an  increasing 
confidence  that  I  could  fight  my  way  in  the 
world  as  a  naturalist,  and  that  I  was  therefore 
justified  in  following  my  strong  bent  in  that 
direction.  My  experience  in  Munich  was  very 
varied.  With  Dollinger  I  learned  to  value 
accuracy  of  observation.  As  I  was  living  in 
his  house,  he  gave  me  personal  instruction  in 
the  use  of  the  microscope,  and  showed  me  his 
own  methods  of  embryological  investigation. 
He  had  already  been  the  teacher  of  Karl 
Ernst  von  Baer ;  and  though  the  pupil  outran 
the  master,  and  has  become  the  pride  of  the 
scientific  world,  it  is  but  just  to  remember  that 
he  owed  to  him  his  first  initiation  into  the 
processes  of  embryological  research.  Dollin- 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.          151 

ger  was  a  careful,  minute,  persevering  observer, 
as  well  as  a  deep  thinker ;  but  he  was  as  indo- 
lent with  his  pen  as  he  was  industrious  with 
his  brain.  He  gave  his  intellectual  capital  to 
his  pupils  without  stint  or  reserve,  and  noth- 
ing delighted  him  more  than  to  sit  down  for 
a  quiet  talk  on  scientific  matters  with  a  few 
students,  or  to  take  a  ramble  with  them  into 
the  fields  outside  the  city,  and  explain  to  them 
as  he  walked  the  result  of  any  recent  in- 
vestigation he  had  made.  If  he  found  him- 
self understood  by  his  listeners  he  was  satis- 
fied, and  cared  for  no  farther  publication  of 
his  researches.  I  could  enumerate  many  works 
of  masters  in  our  science,  which  had  no  other 
foundation  at  the  outset  than  these  inspiriting 
conversations.  No  one  has  borne  warmer  tes- 
timony to  the  influence  Dollinger  has  had  in 
this  indirect  way  on  the  progress  of  our  sci- 
ence than  the  investigator  I  have  already 
mentioned  as  his  greatest  pupil,  —  von  Baer. 
In  the  introduction  to  his  work  on  embryol- 
ogy he  gratefully  acknowledges  his  debt  to 
his  old  teacher. 

"Among  the  most  fascinating  of  our  pro- 
fessors was  Oken.  A  master  in  the  art  of 
teaching,  he  exercised  an  almost  irresistible 
influence  over  his  students.  Constructing  the 


152  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

universe  out  of  his  own  brain,  deducing  from 
a  priori  conceptions  all  the  relations  of  the 
three  kingdoms  into  which  he  divided  all  liv- 
ing beings,  classifying  the  animals  as  if  by 
magic,  in  accordance  with  an  analogy  based 
on  the  dismembered  body  of  man,  it  seemed  to 
us  who  listened  that  the  slow  laborious  pro- 
cess of  accumulating  precise  detailed  knowl- 
edge could  only  be  the  work  of  drones,  while 
a  generous,  commanding  spirit  might  build 
the  world  out  of  its  own  powerful  imagina- 
tion. The  temptation  to  impose  one's  own 
ideas  upon  nature,  to  explain  her  mysteries 
by  brilliant  theories  rather  than  by  patient 
study  of  the  facts  as  we  find  them,  still  leads 
us  away.  With  the  school  of  the  physio-phi- 
losophers began  (at  least  in  our  day  and  gen- 
eration) that  overbearing  confidence  in  the 
abstract  conceptions  of  the  human  mind  as 
applied  to  the  study  of  nature,  which  still  im- 
pairs the  fairness  of  our  classifications  and 
prevents  them  from  interpreting  truly  the 
natural  relations  binding  together  all  living 
beings.  And  yet,  the  young  naturalist  of 
that  day  who  did  not  share,  in  some  degree, 
the  intellectual  stimulus  given  to  scientific  pur- 
suits by  physio-philosophy  would  have  missed 
a  part  of  his  training.  There  is  a  great  dis- 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.         153 

tance  between  the  man  who,  like  Oken,  at- 
tempts to  construct  the  whole  system  of  na- 
ture from  general  premises  and  the  one  who, 
while  subordinating  his  conceptions  to  the 
facts,  is  yet  capable  of  generalizing  the  facts, 
of  recognizing  their  most  comprehensive  rela- 
tions. No  thoughtful  naturalist  can  silence 
the  suggestions,  continually  arising  in  the 
course  of  his  investigations,  respecting  the 
origin  and  deeper  connection  of  all  living  be- 
ings ;  but  he  is  the  truest  student  of  nature 
who,  while  seeking  the  solution  of  these  great 
problems,  admits  that  the  only  true  scientific 
system  must  be  one  in  which  the  thought,  the 
intellectual  structure,  rises  out  of  and  is  based 
upon  facts.  The  great  merit  of  the  physio- 
philosophers  consisted  in  their  suggestiveness. 
They  did  much  in  freeing  our  age  from  the 
low  estimation  of  natural  history  as  a  science 
which  prevailed  in  the  last  century.  They 
stimulated  a  spirit  of  independence  among 
observers ;  but  they  also  instilled  a  spirit  of 
daring,  which,  from  its  extravagance,  has  been 
fatal  to  the  whole  school.  He  is  lost,  as  an 
observer,  who  believes  that  he  can,  with  im- 
punity, affirm  that  for  which  he  can  adduce 
no  evidence.  It  was  a  curious  intellectual 
experience  to  listen  day  after  day  to  the  lee- 


154  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

tures  of  Oken,  while  following  at  the  same 
time  Schelling's  courses,  where  he  was  shift- 
ing the  whole  ground  of  his  philosophy  from 
its  negative  foundation  as  an  a  priori  doc- 
trine to  a  positive  basis,  as  an  historical 
science.  He  unfolded  his  views  in  a  succes- 
sion of  exquisite  lectures,  delivered  during 
four  consecutive  years. 

"  Among  my  fellow-students  were  many 
young  men  who  now  rank  among  the  highest 
lights  in  the  various  departments  of  science, 
and  others,  of  equal  promise,  whose  early  death 
cut  short  their  work  in  this  world.  Some  of 
us  had  already  learned  at  this  time  to  work 
for  ourselves  ;  not  merely  to  attend  lectures 
and  study  from  books.  The  best  spirit  of 
emulation  existed  among  us ;  we  met  often 
to  discuss  our  observations,  undertook  fre- 
quent excursions  in  the  neighborhood,  deliv- 
ered lectures  to  our  fellow-students,  and  had, 
not  infrequently,  the  gratification  of  seeing 
our  university  professors  among  the  listeners. 
These  exercises  were  of  the  highest  value  to 
me  as  a  preparation  for  speaking,  in  later 
years,  before  larger  audiences.  My  study 
was  usually  the  lecture-room.  It  would  hold 
conveniently  from  fifteen  to  twenty  persons, 
and  both  students  and  professors  used  to  call 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH.         155 

our  quarters  "  The  Little  Academy."  In  that 
room  I  made  all  the  skeletons  represented  on 
the  plates  of  Wagler's  "Natural  System  of 
Reptiles ; "  there  I  once  received  the  great 
anatomist,  Meckel,  sent  to  me  by  Dollinger, 
to  examine  my  anatomical  preparations  and 
especially  the  many  fish-skeletons  I  had  made 
from  fresh-water  fishes.  By  my  side  were 
constantly  at  work  two  artists;  one  engaged 
in  drawing  various  objects  of  natural  history, 
the  other  in  drawing  fossil  fishes.  I  kept  al- 
ways one  and  sometimes  two  artists  in  my 
pay;  it  was  not  easy,  with  an  allowance  of 
$250  a  year,  but  they  were  even  poorer  than 
I,  and  so  we  managed  to  get  along  together. 
My  microscope  I  had  earned  by  writing. 

"  I  had  hardly  finished  the  publication  of 
the  Brazilian  Fishes,  when  I  began  to  study 
the  works  of  the  older  naturalists.  Professor 
Dollinger  had  presented  me  with  a  copy  of 
Rondelet,  which  was  my  delight  for  a  long 
time.  I  was  especially  struck  by  the  naivete  of 
his  narrative  and  the  minuteness  of  his  descrip- 
tions as  well  as  by  the  fidelity  of  his  wood- 
cuts, some  of  which  are  to  this  day  the  best 
figures  we  have  of  the  species  they  represent. 
His  learning  overwhelmed  me  ;  I  would  gladly 
have  read,  as  he  did,  everything  that  had  been 
written  before  my  time ;  but  there  were  au- 


156  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

thors  who  wearied  me,  and  I  confess  that  at 
that  age  Linnseus  was  among  the  number.  I 
found  him  dry,  pedantic,  dogmatic,  conceited ; 
while  I  was  charmed  with  Aristotle,  whose 
zoology  I  have  read  and  re-read  ever  since  at 
intervals  of  two  or  three  years.  I  must,  how- 
ever, do  myself  the  justice  to  add,  that  after 
I  knew  more  of  the  history  of  our  science  I 
learned  also  duly  to  reverence  Linnseus.  But 
a  student,  already  familiar  with  the  works  of 
Cuvier,  and  but  indifferently  acquainted  with 
the  earlier  progress  of  zoology,  could  hardly 
appreciate  the  merit  of  the  great  reformer  of 
natural  history.  His  defects  were  easily  per- 
ceived, and  it  required  more  familiarity  than 
mine  then  was  with  the  gradual  growth  of 
the  science,  from  Aristotle  onward,  to  under- 
stand how  great  and  beneficial  an  influence 
Linnseus  had  exerted  upon  modern  natural 
history. 

"  I  cannot  review  my  Munich  life  without 
deep  gratitude.  The  city  teemed  with  re- 
sources for  the  student  in  arts,  letters,  philos- 
ophy, and  science.  It  was  distinguished  at 
that  time  for  activity  in  public  as  well  as  in 
academic  life.  The  king  seemed  liberal;  he 
was  the  friend  of  poets  and  artists,  and  aimed 
at  concentrating  all  the  glories  of  Germany 
in  his  new  university.  I  thus  enjoyed  for  a 


AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH.         157 

few  years  the  example  of  the  most  brilliant 
intellects,  and  that  stimulus  which  is  given  by 
competition  between  men  equally  eminent  in 
different  spheres  of  human  knowledge.  Un- 
der such  circumstances  a  man  either  subsides 
into  the  position  of  a  follower  in  the  ranks 
that  gather  around  a  master,  or  he  aspires  to 
be  a  master  himself. 

"  The  time  had  come  when  even  the  small 
allowance  I  received  from  borrowed  capital 
must  cease.  I  was  now  twenty-four  years  of 
age.  I  was  Doctor  of  Philosophy  and  Medi- 
cine, and  author  of  a  quarto  volume  on  the 
fishes  of  Brazil.  I  had  traveled  on  foot  all 
over  Southern  Germany,  visited  Vienna,  and 
explored  extensive  tracts  of  the  Alps.  I  knew 
every  animal,  living  and  fossil,  in  the  Mu- 
seums of  Munich,  Stuttgart,  Tubingen,  Erlan- 
gen,  Wurzburg,  Carlsruhe,  and  Frankfort ;  but 
my  prospects  were  as  dark  as  ever,  and  I  saw 
no  hope  of  making  my  way  in  the  world,  ex- 
cept by  the  practical  pursuit  of  my  profession 
as  physician.  So,  at  the  close  of  1830,  I  left 
the  university  and  went  home,  with  the  inten- 
tion of  applying  myself  to  the  practice  of 
medicine,  confident  that  my  theoretical  infor- 
mation and  my  training  in  the  art  of  observ- 
ing would  carry  me  through  the  new  ordeal 
I  was  about  to  meet." 


CHAPTER  V. 

1830-1832  :  JET.  23-25. 

Year  at  Home.  —  Leaves  Home  for  Paris.  —  Delays  on  the 
Road.  —  Cholera.  —  Arrival  in  Paris.  —  First  Visit  to  Cu- 
vier.  —  Cuvier's  Kindness.  —  His  Death.  —  Poverty  in 
Paris.  —  Home  Letters  concerning  Embarrassments  and 
about  his  Work.  —  Singular  Dream. 

ON  the  4th  of  December,  1830,  Agassiz  left 
Munich,  in  company  with  Mr.  Dinkel,  and 
after  a  short  stay  at  St.  Gallen  and  Zurich, 
spent  in  looking  up  fossil  fishes  and  making 
drawings  of  them,  they  reached  Concise  on 
the  30th  of  the  same  month.  Anxiously  as 
his  return  was  awaited  at  home,  we  have  seen 
that  his  father  was  not  without  apprehension 
lest  the  presence  of  the  naturalist,  with  artist, 
specimens,  and  apparatus,  should  be  an  incon- 
venience in  the  quiet  parsonage.  But  every 
obstacle  yielded  to  the  joy  of  reunion,  and 
Agassiz  was  soon  established  with  his  "  paint- 
er," his  fossils,  and  all  his  scientific  outfit, 
under  the  paternal  roof. 

Thus  quietly  engaged  in  his  ichthyological 
studies,  carrying  on  his  work  on  the  fossil 


DEPARTURE  FOR  PARIS.  159 

fishes,  together  with  that  on  the  fresh-water 
fishes  of  Central  Europe,  he  passed  nearly  a 
year  at  home.  He  was  not  without  patients 
also  in  the  village  and  its  environs,  but  had, 
as  yet,  no  prospect  of  permanent  professional 
employment.  In  the  mean  time  it  seemed 
daily  more  and  more  necessary  that  he  should 
carry  his  work  to  Paris,  to  the  great  centre  of 
scientific  life,  where  he  could  have  the  widest 
field  for  comparison  and  research.  There,  also, 
he  could  continue  and  complete  to  the  best 
advantage  his  medical  studies.  His  poverty 
was  the  greatest  hindrance  to  any  such  move. 
He  was  not,  however,  without  some  slight  in- 
dependent means,  especially  since  his  publish- 
ing arrangements  provided  in  part  for  the 
carrying  on  of  his  work.  His  generous  uncle 
added  something  to  this,  and  an  old  friend 
of  his  father's,  M.  Christinat,  a  Swiss  clergy- 
man with  whom  he  had  been  from  boyhood 
a  great  favorite,  urged  upon  him  his  own  con- 
tribution toward  a  work  in  which  he  felt  the 
liveliest  interest.  Still  the  prospect  with 
which  he  left  for  Paris  in  September,  1831, 
was  dark  enough,  financially  speaking,  though 
full  of  hope  in  another  sense.  On  the  road 
he  made  several  halts  for  purposes  of  study, 
combining,  as  usual,  professional  with  scien- 


160  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

tific  objects,  hospitals  with  museums.  He  was, 
perhaps,  a  little  inclined  to  believe  that  the 
most  favorable  conditions  for  his  medical  stud- 
ies were  to  be  found  in  conjunction  with  the 
best  collections.  He  had,  however,  a  special 
medical  purpose,  being  earnest  to  learn  every- 
thing regarding  the  treatment  and  the  limita- 
tion of  cholera,  then  for  the  first  time  making 
its  appearance  in  Western  Europe  with  fright- 
ful virulence.  Believing  himself  likely  to  con- 
tinue the  practice  of  medicine  for  some  years 
at  least,  he  thought  his  observations  upon  this 
scourge  would  be  of  great  importance  to  him. 
His  letters  of  this  date  to  his  father  are  full 
of  the  subject,  and  of  his  own  efforts  to  ascer- 
tain the  best  means  of  prevention  and  defense. 
The  following  answer  to  an  appeal  from  his 
mother  shows,  however,  that  his  delays  caused 
anxiety  at  home,  lest  the  small  means  he  could 
devote  to  his  studies  in  Paris  should  be  con- 
sumed on  the  road. 


TO   HIS   MOTHER. 


CARLSRUHE,  November,  1831. 

...  I  returned  day  before  yesterday  from 
my  trip  in  Wurtemberg,  and  though  I  al- 
ready knew  what  precautions  had  been  taken 
everywhere  in  anticipation  of  cholera,  I  do 


STUDIES  ON  THE  WAY  TO  PARIS.       161 

not  think  my  journey  was  a  useless  one,  and 
am  convinced  that  my  observations  will  not 
be  without  interest,  —  chiefly  for  myself,  of 
course,  but  of  utility  to  others  also  I  hope. 
Your  letter  being  so  urgent,  I  will  not,  how- 
ever, delay  my  departure  an  instant.  Between 
to-day  and  to-morrow  I  shall  put  in  order  the 
specimens  lent  me  by  the  Museum,  and  then 
start  at  once.  ...  In  proportion  to  my  previ- 
ous anxiety  is  my  pleasure  in  the  prospect  of 
going  to  Paris,  now  that  I  am  better  fitted  to 
present  myself  there  as  I  could  wish.  I  have 
collected  for  my  fossil  fishes  all  the  materials 
I  still  desired  to  obtain  from  the  museums  of 
Carlsruhe,  Heidelberg,  and  Strasbourg,  and 
have  extended  my  knowledge  of  geology  suf- 
ficiently to  join,  without  embarrassment  at 
least,  in  conversation  upon  the  more  recent 
researches  in  that  department.  Moreover, 
Braun  has  been  kind  enough  to  give  me  a 
superb  collection,  selected  by  himself,  to  serve 
as  basis  and  guide  in  my  researches.  I  leave 
it  at  Carlsruhe,  since  I  no  longer  need  it.  ... 
I  have  also  been  able  to  avail  myself  of  the 
Museum  of  Carlsruhe,  and  of  the  mineralog- 
ical  collection  of  Braun's  father.  Beside  the 
drawings  made  by  Dinkel,  I  have  added  to 
my  work  one  hundred  and  seventy-one  pages 

VOL.  I.  1 1 


162  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

of  manuscript  in  French  (I  have  just  counted 
them),  written  between  my  excursions  and  in 
the  midst  of  other  occupations.  ...  I  could 
not  have  foreseen  so  rich  a  harvest. 

Thus  prepared,  he  arrived  in  Paris  with  his 
artist  on  the  16th  of  December,  1831.  On 
the  18th  he  writes  to  his  father.  .  .  .  "  Dinkel 
and  I  had  a  very  pleasant  journey,  though  the 
day  after  our  arrival  I  was  so  fatigued  that  I 
could  hardly  move  hand  or  foot,  —  that  was 
yesterday.  Nevertheless,  I  passed  the  even- 
ing very  agreeably  at  the  house  of  M.  Cuvier, 
who  sent  to  invite  me,  having  heard  of  my 
arrival.  To  my  surprise,  I  found  myself  not 
quite  a  stranger,  —  rather,  as  it  were,  among 
old  acquaintances.  I  have  already  given  you 
my  address,  Rue  Copeau  (Hotel  du  Jardin  du 
Roi,  No.  4).  As  it  happens,  M.  Perrotet,  a 
traveling  naturalist,  lives  here  also,  and  has  at 
once  put  me  on  the  right  track  about  what- 
ever I  most  need  to  know.  There  are  in  the 
house  other  well-known  persons  besides.  I  am 
accommodated  very  cheaply,  and  am  at  the 
same  time  within  easy  reach  of  many  things, 
the  neighborhood  of  which  I  can  turn  to  good 
account.  The  medical  school,  for  instance, 
is  within  ten  minutes'  walk ;  the  Jardin  des 


LIFE  IN  PARIS.  163 

Plantes  not  two  hundred  steps  away ;  while 
the  Hospital  (de  la  Pitie),  where  Messieurs 
Andral  and  Lisfranc  teach,  is  opposite,  and 
nearer  still.  To-day  or  to-morrow  I  shall  de- 
liver my  letters,  and  then  set  to  work  in  good 
earnest." 

Pleased  as  he  was  from  the  beginning  with 
all  that  concerned  his  scientific  life  in  Paris, 
the  next  letter  shows  that  the  young  Swiss  did 
not  at  once  find  himself  at  home  in  the  great 
French  capital. 

TO    HIS   SISTER    OLYMPE. 

PARIS,  January  15,  1832. 

.  .  .  My  expectations  in  coming  here  have 
been  more  than  fulfilled.  In  scientific  mat- 
ters I  have  found  all  that  I  knew  must  exist 
in  Paris  (indeed,  my  anticipations  were  rather 
below  than  above  the  mark),  and  beside  that 
I  have  been  met  everywhere  with  courtesy, 
and  have  received  attentions  of  all  sorts.  M. 
Cuvier  and  M.  Humboldt  especially  treat  me 
on  all  occasions  as  an  equal,  and  facilitate  for 
me  the  use  of  the  scientific  collections  so  that 
I  can  work  here  as  if  I  were  at  home.  And 
yet  it  is  not  the  same  thing ;  this  extreme, 
but  formal  politeness  chills  you  instead  of 
putting  you  at  your  ease ;  it  lacks  cordiality, 


164  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

and,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  would  gladly  go 
away  were  I  not  held  fast  by  the  wealth  of 
material  of  which  I  can  avail  myself  for  in- 
struction. In  the  morning  I  follow  the  clin- 
ical courses  at  the  Pitie.  ...  At  ten  o'clock, 
or  perhaps  at  eleven,  I  breakfast,  and  then  go 
to  the  Museum  of  Natural  History,  where  I 
stay  till  dark.  Between  five  and  six  I  dine, 
and  after  that  turn  to  such  medical  studies  as 
do  not  require  daylight.  So  pass  my  days, 
one  like  another,  with  great  regularity.  I 
have  made  it  a  rule  not  to  go  out  after  din- 
ner, —  I  should  lose  too  much  time.  ...  On 
Saturday  only  I  spend  the  evening  at  M.  Cu- 


vier's. 


The  homesickness  which  is  easily  to  be 
read  between  the  lines  of  this  letter,  due,  per- 
haps, to  the  writer's  want  of  familiarity  with 
society  in  its  conventional  aspect,  yielded  to 
the  influence  of  an  intellectual  life,  which  be- 
came daily  more  engrossing.  Cuvier's  kind 
reception  was  but  an  earnest  of  the  affection- 
ate interest  he  seems  from  the  first  to  have 
felt  in  him.  After  a  few  days  he  gave  Agas- 
siz  and  his  artist  a  corner  in  one  of  his  own 
laboratories,  and  often  came  to  encourage  them 
by  a  glance  at  their  work  as  it  went  on. 


LETTER   TO  DR.  MAYOR.  165 

This  relation  continued  until  Cuvier's  death, 
and  Agassiz  enjoyed  for  several  months  the 
scientific  sympathy  and  personal  friendship  of 
the  great  master  whom  he  had  honored  from 
childhood,  and  whose  name  was  ever  on  his 
lips  till  his  own  work  in  this  world  was 
closed.  The  following  letter,  written  two 
months  later,  to  his  uncle  in  Lausanne  tells 
the  story  in  detail. 


TO   DR.    MAYOR. 


PARIS,  February  16,  1832. 

...  I  have  also  a  piece  of  good  news  to 
communicate,  which  will,  I  hope,  lead  to  very 
favorable  results  for  me.  I  think  I  told  you 
when  I  left  for  Paris  that  my  chief  anxiety 
was  lest  I  might  not  be  allowed  to  examine, 
and  still  less  to  describe,  the  fossil  fishes  and 
their  skeletons  in  the  Museum.  Knowing  that 
Cuvier  intended  to  write  a  work  on  this  sub- 
ject, I  supposed  that  he  would  reserve  these 
specimens  for  himself.  I  half  thought  he 
might,  on  seeing  my  work  so  far  advanced, 
propose  to  me  to  finish  it  jointly  with  him, 
—  but  even  this  I  hardly  dared  to  hope.  It 
was  on  this  account,  with  the  view  of  increas- 
ing my  materials  and  having  thereby  a  bet- 
ter chance  of  success  with  M.  Cuvier,  that  I 


166  LOUIS  AGASSJZ. 

desired  so  earnestly  to  stop  at  Strasbourg  and 
Carlsruhe,  where  I  knew  specimens  were  to 
be  seen  which  would  have  a  direct  bearing  on 
my  ami.  The  result  has  far  surpassed  my 
expectation.  I  hastened  to  show  my  material 
to  M.  Cuvier  the  very  day  after  my  arrival. 
He  received  me  with  great  politeness,  though 
with  a  certain  reserve,  and  immediately  gave 
me  permission  to  see  everything  in  the  galler- 
ies of  the  Museum.  But  as  I  knew  that  he 
had  put  together  in  private  collections  all  that 
could  be  of  use  to  himself  in  writing  his  book, 
and  as  he  had  never  said  a  wrord  to  me  of  his 
plan  of  publication,  I  remained  in  a  painful 
state  of  doubt,  since  the  completion  of  his 
work  would  have  destroyed  all  chance  for  the 
sale  of  mine.  Last  Saturday  I  was  passing 
the  evening  there,  and  we  were  talking  of 
science,  when  he  desired  his  secretary  to  bring 
him  a  certain  portfolio  of  drawings.  He 
showed  me  the  contents ;  they  were  drawings 
of  fossil  fishes  and  notes  which  he  had  taken 
in  the  British  Museum  and  elsewhere.  After 
looking  it  through  with  me,  he  said  he  had 
seen  with  satisfaction  the  manner  in  which 
I  had  treated  this  subject ;  that  I  had  in- 
deed anticipated  him,  since  he  had  intended 
at  some  future  tune  to  do  the  same  thing; 


LEGACY  FROM  CUVIER.  167 

but  that  as  I  had  given  it  so  much  attention, 
and  had  done  my  work  so  well,  he  had  decided 
to  renounce  his  project,  and  to  place  at  my 
disposition  all  the  materials  he  had  collected 
and  all  the  preliminary  notes  he  had  taken. 

You  can  imagine  what  new  ardor  this  has 
given  me  for  my  work,  the  more  so  because 
M.  Cuvier,  M.  Humboldt,  and  several  other 
persons  of  mark  who  are  interested  in  it  have 
promised  to  speak  in  my  behalf  to  a  publisher 
(to  Levrault,  who  seems  disposed  to  undertake 
the  publication  should  peace  be  continued), 
and  to  recommend  me  strongly.  To  accom- 
plish my  end  without  neglecting  other  occu- 
pations, I  work  regularly  at  least  fifteen  hours 
a  day,  sometimes  even  an  hour  or  two  more ; 
but  I  hope  to  reach  my  goal  in  good  time. 

This  trust  from  Cuvier  proved  to  be  a  leg- 
acy. Less  than  three  months  after  the  date 
of  this  letter  Agassiz  went,  as  often  hap- 
pened, to  work  one  morning  with  him  in  his 
study.  It  was  Sunday,  and  he  was  employed 
upon  something  which  Cuvier  had  asked  him 
to  do,  saying,  "  You  are  young ;  you  have  time 
enough  for  it,  and  I  have  none  to  spare."  They 
worked  together  till  eleven  o'clock,  when  Cu- 
vier invited  Agassiz  to  join  him  at  breakfast. 


168  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

After  a  little  time  spent  over  the  breakfast 
table  in  talk  with  the  ladies  of  the  family, 
while  Cuvier  opened  his  letters,  papers,  etc., 
they  returned  to  the  working  room,  and  were 
busily  engaged  in  their  separate  occupations 
when  Agassiz  was  surprised  to  hear  the  clock 
strike  five,  the  hour  for  his  dinner.  He  ex- 
pressed his  regret  that  he  had  not  quite  fin- 
ished his  work,  but  said  that  as  he  belonged  to 
a  student's  table  his  dinner  would  not  wait  for 
him,  and  he  would  return  soon  to  complete 
his  task.  Cuvier  answered  that  he  was  quite 
right  not  to  neglect  his  regular  hours  for 
meals,  and  commended  his  devotion  to  study, 
but  added,  "  Be  careful,  and  remember  that 
work  kills.'9  They  were  the  last  words  he 
heard  from  his  beloved  teacher.  The  next 
day,  as  Cuvier  was  going  up  to  the  tribune  in 
the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  he  fell,  was  taken 
up  paralyzed,  and  carried  home.  Agassiz 
never  saw  him  again.1 

In  order  to  keep  intact  these  few  data  re- 
specting his  personal  relations  with  Cuvier,  as 
told  in  later  years  by  Agassiz  himself,  the 

1  This  warning  of  Cuvier,  "  Work  kills,"  strangely  recalls 
Johannes  Miiller's  "  Blood  clings  to  work  ; "  the  one  seems 
the  echo  of  the  other.  See  Memoir  of  Johannes  Muller,  by 
Rudolf  Virchow,  p.  38. 


PECUNIARY  ANXIETIES.  169 

course  of  the  narrative  has  been  anticipated 
by  a  month  or  two.  Let  us  now  return  to  the 
natural  order.  The  letter  to  his  uncle  of 
course  gave  great  pleasure  at  home.  Just 
after  reading  it  his  father  writes  (February, 
1832),  "  Now  that  you  are  intrusted  with  the 
portfolio  of  M.  Cuvier,  I  suppose  your  plan 
is  considerably  enlarged,  and  that  your  work 
will  be  of  double  volume;  tell  me,  then,  as 
much  about  it  as  you  think  I  can  understand, 
which  will  not  be  a  great  deal  after  all."  His 
mother's  letter  on  the  same  occasion  is  full  of 
tender  sympathy  and  gratitude. 

Meanwhile  one  daily  anxiety  embittered  his 
scientific  happiness.  The  small  means  at  his 
command  could  hardly  be  made,  even  with  the 
strictest  economy,  to  cover  the  necessary  ex- 
penses of  himself  and  his  artist,  in  which  were 
included  books,  drawing  materials,  fees,  etc. 
He  was  in  constant  terror  lest  he  should  be 
obliged  to  leave  Paris,  to  give  up  his  investiga- 
tions on  the  fossil  fishes,  and  to  stop  work  on 
the  costly  plates  he  had  begun.  The  truth 
about  his  affairs,  which  he  would  gladly  have 
concealed  from  those  at  home  as  long  as 
possible,  was  drawn  from  him  by  an  acciden- 
tal occurrence.  His  brother  had  written  to 
him  for  a  certain  book,  and,  failing  to  receive 


170  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

it,  inquired  with  some  surprise  why  his  com- 
mission was  neglected.  Agassiz's  next  letter, 
about  a  month  later  than  the  one  to  his  uncle, 
gives  the  explanation. 

TO   HIS   BROTHER. 

PARIS,  March,  1832. 

.  .  .  Here  is  the  book  for  which  you  asked 
me,  —  price,  18  francs.  I  shall  be  very  sorry 
if  it  comes  too  late,  but  I  could  not  help  it. 
...  In  the  first  place  I  had  not  money  enough 
to  pay  for  it  without  being  left  actually  penni- 
less. You  can  imagine  that  after  the  fuel 
bill  for  the  winter  is  paid,  little  remains  for 
other  expenses  out  of  my  200  francs  a  month, 
five  louis  of  which  are  always  due  to  my  com- 
panion. Far  from  having  anything  in  ad- 
vance, my  month's  supply  is  thus  taken  up  at 
once.  .  .  .  Beside  this  cause  of  delay,  you 
can  have  no  idea  what  it  is  to  hunt  for  any- 
thing in  Paris  when  you  are  a  stranger  there. 
As  I  go  out  only  in  two  or  three  directions 
leading  to  my  work,  and  might  not  otherwise 
leave  my  own  street  for  a  month  at  a  time,  I 
naturally  find  myself  astray  when  I  am  off  this 
beaten  track.  .  .  .  You  have  asked  me  sev- 
eral times  how  I  have  been  received  by  those 
to  whom  I  had  introductions.  Frankly,  after 


HOME  LETTERS.  171 

having  delivered  a  few  of  my  letters,  I  have 
never  been  again,  because  I  cannot,  in  my 
position,  spare  time  for  visits.  .  .  .  Another 
excellent  reason  for  staying  away  now  is  that 
I  have  no  presentable  coat.  At  M.  Cuvier's 
only  am  I  sufficiently  at  ease  to  go  in  a  frock 
coat.  .  .  .  Saturday,  a  week  ago,  M.  de  F6- 
russac  offered  me  the  editorship  of  the  zoo- 
logical section  of  the  "  Bulletin ; "  it  would 
be  worth  to  me  an  additional  thousand  francs, 
but  would  require  two  or  three  hours'  work 
daily.  Write  me  soon  what  you  think  about 
it.  In  the  midst  of  all  the  encouragements 
which  sustain  me  and  renew  my  ardor,  I  am 
depressed  by  the  reverse  side  of  my  position. 

This  letter  drew  forth  the  following  one. 


FROM    HIS    MOTHER. 


CONCISE,  March,  1832. 

.  .  .  Much  as  your  letter  to  your  uncle  de- 
lighted us,  that  to  your  brother  has  saddened 
us.  It  seems,  my  dear  child,  that  you  are 
painfully  straitened  in  means.  I  understand 
it  by  personal  experience,  and  in  your  case  I 
have  foreseen  it ;  it  is  the  cloud  which  has 
always  darkened  your  prospects  to  me.  I 
want  to  talk  to  you,  my  dear  Louis,  of  your 


172  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

future,  which  has  often  made  me  anxious. 
You  know  your  mother's  heart  too  well  to 
misunderstand  her  thought,  even  should  its  ex- 
pression be  unacceptable  to  you.  With  much 
knowledge,  acquired  by  assiduous  industry, 
you  are  still  at  twenty-five  years  of  age  living 
on  brilliant  hopes,  in  relation,  it  is  true,  with 
great  people,  and  known  as  having  distin- 
guished talent.  Now,  all  this  would  seem  to  me 
delightful  if  you  had  an  income  of  fifty  thou- 
sand francs ;  but,  in  your  position,  you  must 
absolutely  have  an  occupation  which  will  enable 
you  to  live,  and  free  you  from  the  insupport- 
able weight  of  dependence  on  others.  From 
this  day  forward,  my  dear  child,  you  must 
look  to  this  end  alone  if  you  would  find  it  pos- 
sible to  pursue  honorably  the  career  you  have 
chosen.  Otherwise  constant  embarrassments 
will  so  limit  your  genius,  that  you  will  fall 
below  your  own  capacity.  If  you  follow  our 
advice  you  will  perhaps  reach  the  result  of 
your  work  in  the  natural  sciences  a  little  later, 
but  all  the  more  surely.  Let  us  see  how  you 
can  combine  the  work  to  which  you  have  al- 
ready consecrated  so  much  time,  with  the  pos- 
sibility of  self-support.  It  appears  from  your 
letter  to  your  brother  that  you  see  no  one  in 
Paris ;  the  reason  seems  to  me  a  sad  one,  but  it 


LETTER   FROM  HIS  MOTHER.          173 

is  unanswerable,  and  since  you  cannot  change 
it,  you  must  change  your  place  of  abode  and 
return  to  your  own  country.  You  have  al- 
ready seen  in  Paris  all  those  persons  whom 
you  thought  it  essential  to  see ;  unless  you 
are  strangely  mistaken  in  their  good-will,  you 
will  be  no  less  sure  of  it  in  Switzerland  than 
in  Paris,  and  since  you  cannot  take  part  in 
their  society,  your  relations  with  them  will  be 
the  same  at  the  distance  of  a  hundred  leagues 
as  they  are  now.  You  must  therefore  leave 
Paris  for  Geneva,  Lausanne,  or  Neuchatel,  or 
any  city  where  you  can  support  yourself  by 
teaching.  .  .  .  This  seems  to  me  the  most  ad- 
vantageous course  for  you.  If  before  fixing 
yourself  permanently  you  like  to  take  your 
place  at  the  parsonage  again,  you  will  always 
find  us  ready  to  facilitate,  as  far  as  we  can, 
any  arrangements  for  your  convenience.  Here 
you  can  live  in  perfect  tranquillity  and  with- 
out expense. 

There  are  two  other  subjects  which  I  want 
to  discuss  with  you,  though  perhaps  I  shall 
not  make  myself  so  easily  understood.  You 
have  seen  the  handsome  public  building  in 
process  of  construction  at  Neuchatel.  It  will 
be  finished  this  year,  and  I  am  told  that  the 
Museum  will  be  placed  there.  I  believe  the 


174  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

collections  are  very  incomplete,  and  the  city  of 
Neuchatel  is  rich  enough  to  expend  something 
in  filling  the  blanks.  It  has  occurred  to  me, 
my  dear,  that  this  would  be  an  excellent  op- 
portunity for  disposing  of  your  alcoholic  speci- 
mens. They  form,  at  present,  a  capital  yield- 
ing no  interest,  requiring  care,  and  to  be  en- 
joyed only  at  the  cost  of  endless  outlay  in  glass 
jars,  alcohol,  and  transportation,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  rent  of  a  room  in  which  to  keep  them. 
All  this,  beside  attracting  many  visitors,  is  too 
heavy  a  burden  for  you,  from  which  you  may 
free  yourself  by  taking  advantage  of  this  rare 
chance.  To  this  end  you  must  have  an  im- 
mediate understanding  with  M.  Coulon,  lest 
he  should  make  a  choice  elsewhere.  Your 
brother,  being  on  the  spot,  might  negotiate 
for  you.  .  .  .  Finally,  my  last  topic  is  Mr. 
Dinkel.  You  are  very  fortunate  to  have 
found  in  your  artist  such  a  thoroughly  nice 
fellow ;  nevertheless,  in  view  of  the  expense, 
you  must  make  it  possible  to  do  without  him. 
I  see  you  look  at  me  aghast ;  but  where  a  sac- 
rifice is  to  be  made  we  must  not  do  it  by 
halves ;  we  must  pull  up  the  tree  by  the  roots. 
It  is  a  great  evil  to  be  spending  more  than  one 
earns.  .  .  . 


WORK  IN  PARIS.  175 

TO   HIS   MOTHER. 

PARIS,  March  25,  1832. 

...  It  is  true,  dear  mother,  that  I  am 
greatly  straitened ;  that  I  have  much  less 
money  to  spend  than  I  could  wish,  or  even 
than  I  need ;  on  the  other  hand,  this  makes 
me  work  the  harder,  and  keeps  me  away  from 
distractions  which  might  otherwise  tempt  me. 
.  .  .  With  reference  to  my  work,  however, 
things  are  not  quite  as  you  suppose,  as  re- 
gards either  my  stay  here  or  my  relations  with 
M.  Cuvier.  Certainly,  I  hope  that  I  should 
lose  neither  his  good- will  nor  his  protection  on 
leaving  here  ;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  sure  that 
he  would  be  the  first  to  advise  me  to  accept 
any  professorship,  or  any  place  which  might  be 
advantageous  for  me,  however  removed  from 
my  present  occupations,  and  that  his  counsels 
would  follow  me  there.  But  what  cannot  fol- 
low me,  and  what  I  owe  quite  as  much  to 
him,  is  the  privilege  of  examining  all  the  col- 
lections. These  I  can  have  nowhere  but  in 
Paris,  since  even  if  he  would  consent  to  it  I 
could  not  carry  away  with  me  a  hundred 
quintals  of  fossil  fish,  which,  for  the  sake  of 
comparison,  I  must  have  before  my  eyes,  nor 
thousands  of  fish-skeletons,  which  would  alone 


176  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

fill  some  fifty  great  cases.  It  is  this  which 
compels  me  to  stay  here  till  I  have  finished 
mv  work.  I  should  add  that  M.  Elie  de  Beau- 

•/ 

mont  has  also  been  kind  enough  to  place  at 
my  disposition  the  fossil  fishes  from  the  col- 
lection at  the  Mining  School,  and  that  M. 
Brongniart  has  made  me  the  same  offer  re- 
garding his  collection,  which  is  one  of  the 
finest  among  those  owned  by  individuals  in 
Paris.  .  .  . 

As  to  my  collections,  I  had  already  thought 
of  asking  either  the  Vaudois  government  or 
the  city  of  Neuchatel  to  receive  them  into 
the  Museum,  merely  on  condition  that  they 
should  provide  for  the  expenses  of  exhibi- 
tion and  preservation,  making  use  of  them, 
meanwhile,  for  the  instruction  of  the  public. 
I  should  be  sorry  to  lose  all  right  to  them, 
because  I  hope  they  may  have  another  final 
destination.  I  do  not  despair  of  seeing  the 
different  parts  of  Switzerland  united  at  some 
future  day  by  a  closer  tie,  and  in  case  of  such 
a  union  a  truly  Helvetic  university  would  be- 
come a  necessity ;  then,  my  aim  would  be  to 
make  my  collection  the  basis  of  that  which 
they  would  be  obliged  to  found  for  their 
courses  of  lectures.  It  is  really  a  shame  that 
Switzerland,  richer  and  more  extensive  than 


RETRENCHMENT.  177 

many  a  small  kingdom,  should  have  no  uni- 
versity, when  some  states  of  not  half  its  size 
have  even  two ;  for  instance,  the  grand  duchy 
of  Baden,  one  of  whose  universities,  that  of 
Heidelberg,  ranks  among  the  first  in  all  Ger- 
many. If  ever  I  attain  a  position  allowing 
me  so  to  do,  I  shall  make  every  effort  in  my 
power  to  procure  for  my  country  the  greatest 
of  benefits :  namely,  that  of  an  intellectual 
unity,  which  can  arise  only  from  a  high  de- 
gree of  civilization,  and  from  the  radiation  of 
knowledge  from  one  central  point. 

I,  too,  have  considered  the  question  about 
Dinkel,  and  if,  when  I  have  finished  my  work 
here,  my  position  is  not  changed,  and  I  have 
no  definite  prospect,  such  as  would  justify  me 
in  keeping  him  with  me,  —  well !  then  we 
must  part !  I  have  long  been  preparing  my- 
self for  this,  by  employing  him  only  upon 
what  is  indispensable  to  the  publication  of  my 
first  numbers,  hoping  that  these  may  procure 
me  the  means  of  paying  for  such  illustrations 
as  I  shall  further  need.  As  my  justification 
for  having  engaged  him  in  the  first  instance, 
and  continued  this  expense  till  now,  I  can 
truly  say  that  it  is  in  a  great  degree  through 
his  drawings  that  M.  Cuvier  has  been  able  to 
judge  of  my  work,  and  so  has  been  led  to 

VOL  I.  12 


178  LOUIS  AGASSTZ. 

make  a  surrender  of  all  his  materials  in  my 
favor.  I  foresaw  clearly  that  this  was  my 
only  chance  of  competing  with  him,  and  it 
was  not  without  reason  that  I  insisted  so 
strongly  on  having  Dinkel  with  me  in  pass- 
ing through  Strasbourg  and  subsequently  at 
Carlsruhe.  Had  I  not  done  so,  M.  Cuvier 
might  still  be  in  advance  of  me.  Now  my 
mind  is  at  rest  on  this  score ;  I  have  already 
written  you  all  about  his  kindness  in  offering 
me  the  work.  Could  I  only  be  equally  for- 
tunate in  its  publication  ! 

M.  Cuvier  urges  me  strongly  to  present  my 
book  to  the  Academy,  in  order  to  obtain  a 
report  upon  its  contents.  I  must  first  finish 
it,  however,  and  the  task  is  not  a  light  one. 
For  this  reason,  above  all,  I  regret  my  want 
of  means ;  but  for  that  I  could  have  the  draw- 
ings made  at  once,  and  the  Academy  report, 
considered  as  a  recommendation,  would  cer- 
tainly help  on  the  publication  greatly.  But 
in  this  respect  I  have  long  been  straitened ; 
Auguste  knows  that  I  had  at  Munich  an  art- 
ist who  was  to  complete  what  I  had  left  there 
for  execution,  and  that  I  stopped  his  work  on 
leaving  Concise.  If  the  stagnation  of  the 
book-trade  continues  I  shall,  perhaps,  be  forced 
to  give  up  Dinkel  also ;  for  if  I  cannot  be- 


ARRIVAL   OF  BRAUN  IN  PARIS.       179 

gin  the  publication,  which  will,  I  hope,  bring 
me  some  return,  I  must  cease  to  accumulate 
material  in  advance.  Should  business  revive 
soon,  however,  I  may  yet  have  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  all  completed  before  I  leave  Paris. 

I  think  I  forgot  to  mention  the  arrival  of 
Braun  six  weeks  after  me.  I  had  a  double 
pleasure  in  his  coming,  for  he  brought  with 
him  his  younger  brother,  a  charming  fellow, 
and  a  distinguished  pupil  of  the  polytechnic 
school  of  Carlsruhe.  He  means  to  be  a  min- 
ing engineer,  and  comes  to  study  such  col- 
lections at  Paris  as  are  connected  with  this 
branch.  You  cannot  imagine  what  happiness 
and  comfort  I  have  in  my  relations  with  Alex- 
ander ;  he  is  so  good,  so  cultivated  and  high- 
minded,  that  his  friendship  is  a  real  blessing  to 
me.  We  both  feel  very  much  our  separation 
from  the  elder  Schimper,  who,  spite  of  his 
great  desire  to  join  us  at  Carlsruhe  and  ac- 
company us  to  Paris,  was  not  able  to  leave 
Munich.  .  .  . 

P.  S.  My  love  to  Auguste.  To-day  (Sun- 
day) I  went  again  to  see  M.  Humboldt  about 
Auguste's l  plan,  but  did  not  find  him. 

Then  follow  several  pages,  addressed  to  his 

1  Concerning  a  business  undertaking  in  Mexico. 


180  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

father,  in  answer  to  the  request  contained  in 
one  of  his  last  letters  that  Louis  would  tell 
him  as  much  as  he  thinks  he  can  understand 
of  his  work.  There  is  something  touching 
in  this  little  lesson  given  by  the  son  to  the 
father,  as  showing  with  what  delight  Louis 
responded  to  the  least  touch  of  parental  affec- 
tion respecting  his  favorite  studies,  so  long 
looked  upon  at  home  with  a  certain  doubt 
and  suspicion.  The  whole  letter  is  not  given 
here,  as  it  is  simply  an  elementary  treatise  on 
geology ;  but  the  close  is  not  without  inter- 
est as  relating  to  the  special  investigations  on 
which  he  was  now  employed. 

"  The  aim  of  our  researches  upon  fossil  ani- 
mals is  to  ascertain  what  beings  have  lived  at 
each  one  of  these  (geological)  epochs  of  crea- 
tion, and  to  trace  their  characters  and  their 
relations  with  those  now  living  ;  in  one  word, 
to  make  them  live  again  in  our  thought.  It 
is  especially  the  fishes  that  I  try  to  restore 
for  the  eyes  of  the  curious,  by  showing  them 
which  ones  have  lived  in  each  epoch,  what 
were  their  forms,  and,  if  possible,  by  drawing 
some  conclusions  as  to  their  probable  modes 
of  life.  You  will  better  understand  the  diffi- 
culty of  my  work  when  I  tell  you  that  in 
many  species  I  have  only  a  single  tooth,  a 


CURIOUS  DREAM.  181 

scale,  a  spine,  as  my  guide  in  the  reconstruc- 
tion of  all  these  characters,  although  some- 
times we  are  fortunate  enough  to  find  species 
with  the  fins  and  the  skeletons  complete.  .  .  . 

"  I  ask  pardon  if  I  have  tired  you  with  my 
long  talk,  but  you  know  how  pleasant  it  is 
to  ramble  on  about  what  interests  us,  and  the 
pleasure  of  being  questioned  by  you  upon  sub- 
jects of  this  kind  has  been  such  a  rare  one  for 
me,  that  I  have  wished  to  present  the  matter 
in  its  full  light,  that  you  may  understand  the 
zeal  and  the  enthusiasm  which  such  researches 
can  excite." 

To  this  period  belongs  a  curious  dream 
mentioned  by  Agassiz  in  his  work  on  the  fos- 
sil fishes.1  It  is  interesting  both  as  a  psycho- 
logical fact  and  as  showing  how,  sleeping  and 
waking,  his  work  was  ever  present  with  him. 
He  had  been  for  two  weeks  striving  to  deci- 
pher the  somewhat  obscure  impression  of  a  fos- 
sil fish  on  the  stone  slab  in  which  it  was  pre- 
served. Weary  and  perplexed  he  put  his  work 
aside  at  last,  and  tried  to  dismiss  it  from  his 
mind.  Shortly  after,  he  waked  one  night  per- 
suaded that  while  asleep  he  had  seen  his  fish 
with  all  the  missing  features  perfectly  restored. 

1  Recherches  sur  les  Poissons  Fossiles.    Cyclopoma  spinosum 
Agassiz.    Vol.  iv.  tab.  1,  pp.  20,  21. 


182  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

But  when  he  tried  to  hold  and  make  fast  the 
image,  it  escaped  him.  Nevertheless,  he  went 
early  to  the  Jardin  des  Plantes,  thinking  that 
on  looking  anew  at  the  impression  he  should 
see  something  which  would  put  him  on  the 
track  of  his  vision.  In  vain,  — the  blurred 
record  was  as  blank  as  ever.  The  next  night 
he  saw  the  fish  again,  but  with  no  more  satis- 
factory result.  When  he  awoke  it  disappeared 
from  his  memory  as  before.  Hoping  that  the 
same  experience  might  be  repeated,  on  the 
third  night  he  placed  a  pencil  and  paper  be- 
side his  bed  before  going  to  sleep.  Accord- 
ingly toward  morning  the  fish  reappeared  in 
his  dream,  confusedly  at  first,  but  at  last  with 
such  distinctness  that  he  had  no  longer  any 
doubt  as  to  its  zoological  characters.  Still 
half  dreaming,  in  perfect  darkness,  he  traced 
these  characters  on  the  sheet  of  paper  at  the 
bedside.  In  the  morning  he  was  surprised  to 
see  in  his  nocturnal  sketch  features  which  he 
thought  it  impossible  the  fossil  itself  should 
reveal.  He  hastened  to  the  Jardin  des  Plantes, 
and,  with  his  drawing  as  a  guide,  succeeded  in 
chiseling  away  the  surface  of  the  stone  under 
which  portions  of  the  fish  proved  to  be  hid- 
den. When  wholly  exposed  it  corresponded 
with  his  dream  and  his  drawing,  and  he  sue- 


CURIOUS  DREAM.  183 

ceeded  in  classifying  it  with  ease.  He  often 
spoke  of  this  as  a  good  illustration  of  the 
well-known  fact,  that  when  the  body  is  at  rest 
the  tired  brain  will  do  the  work  it  refused  be- 
fore. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

1832  :  ^ET.  25. 

Unexpected  Relief  from  Difficulties.  —  Correspondence  with 
Humboldt.  —  Excursion  to  the  Coast  of  Normandy.  —  First 
Sight  of  the  Sea.  —  Correspondence  concerning  Professor- 
ship at  Neuchatel.  —  Birthday  Fete.  —  Invitation  to  Chair 
of  Natural  History  at  Neuchatel.  —  Acceptance.  —  Letter 
to  Humboldt. 

AGASSIZ  was  not  called  upon  to  make  the 
sacrifice  of  giving  up  his  artist  and  leaving 
Paris,  although  he  was,  or  at  least  thought 
himself,  prepared  for  it.  The  darkest  hour 
is  before  the  dawn,  and  the  letter  next  given 
announces  an  unexpected  relief  from  press- 
ing distress  and  anxiety. 

TO  HIS  FATHER  AND  MOTHER. 

PARIS,  March,  1832. 

...  I  am  still  so  agitated  and  so  surprised 
at  what  has  just  happened  that  I  scarcely  be- 
lieve what  my  eyes  tell  me. 

I  mentioned  in  a  postscript  to  my  last  letter 
that  I  had  called  yesterday  on  M.  de  Hum- 


UNEXPECTED  RELIEF.  185 

boldt,  whom  I  had  not  seen  for  a  long  time, 
in  order  to  speak  to  him  concerning  Auguste's 
affair,  but  that  I  did  not  find  him.  In  former 
visits  I  had  spoken  to  him  about  my  position, 
and  told  him  that  I  did  not  well  know  what 
course  to  take  with  my  publisher.  He  offered 
to  write  to  him,  and  did  so  more  than  two 
months  ago.  Thus  far,  neither  he  nor  I  have 
had  any  answer.  This  morning,  just  as  I  was 
going  out,  a  letter  came  from  M.  de  Hum- 
boldt,  who  writes  me  that  he  is  very  uneasy  at 
receiving  no  reply  from  Cotta,  that  he  fears 
lest  the  uncertainty  and  anxiety  of  mind  re- 
sulting from  this  may  be  injurious  to  my  work, 
and  begs  me  to  accept  the  inclosed  credit  of 
a  thousand  francs.  ...  Oh !  if  my  mother 
would  forget  for  one  moment  that  this  is  the 
celebrated  M.  de  Humboldt,  and  find  courage 
to  write  him  only  a  few  lines,  how  grateful  I 
should  be  to  her.  I  think  it  would  come 
better  from  her  than  from  papa,  who  would 
do  it  more  correctly,  no  doubt,  but  perhaps 
not  quite  as  I  should  like.  Humboldt  is  so 
good,  so  indulgent,  that  you  should  not  hesi- 
tate, dear  mother,  to  write  him  a  few  lines.  He 
lives  Rue  du  Colombier,  No.  22 ;  address,  quite 
simply,  M.  de  Humboldt.  .  .  . 


186  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

In  the  agitation  of  the  moment  the  letter 
was  not  even  signed. 

The  following  note  from  Humboldt  to  Mme. 
Agassiz,  kept  by  her  as  a  precious  possession, 
shows  that  in  answer  to  her  son's  appeal  his 
mother  took  her  courage,  as  the  French  say- 
ing is,  "  with  both  hands/'  and  wrote  as  she 
was  desired. 

FROM   HUMBOLDT   TO   MME.  AGASSIZ. 

PARIS,  April  11,  1832. 

I  should  scold  your  son,  Madame,  for  hav- 
ing spoken  to  you  of  the  slight  mark  of  inter- 
est I  have  been  able  to  show  him ;  and  yet, 
how  can  I  complain  of  a  letter  so  touching,  so 
noble  in  sentiment,  as  the  one  I  have  just  re- 
ceived from  your  hand.  Accept  my  warmest 
thanks  for  it.  How  happy  you  are  to  have 
a  son  so  distinguished  by  his  talents,  by  the 
variety  and  solidity  of  his  acquirements,  and, 
withal,  as  modest  as  if  he  knew  nothing, — 
in  these  days,  too,  when  youth  is  generally 
characterized  by  a  cold  and  scornful  amour- 
propre.  One  might  well  despair  of  the  world 
if  a  person  like  your  son,  with  information  so 
substantial  and  manners  so  sweet  and  prepos- 
sessing, should  fail  to  make  his  way.  I  ap- 
prove highly  the  Neuchatel  plan,  and  hope, 


LETTER  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  187 

in  case  of  need,  to  contribute  to  its  success. 
One  must  aim  at  a  settled  position  in  life. 

Pray  excuse,  Madame,  the  brevity  of  these 
lines,  and  accept  the  assurance  of  my  respect- 
ful regard.  HUMBOLDT. 

The  letter  which  lifted  such  a  load  of  care 
from  Louis  and  his  parents  was  as  follows :  — 

HUMBOLDT   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

PARIS,  March  27,  1832. 

I  am  very  uneasy,  my  dearest  M.  Agassiz,  at 
being  still  without  any  letter  from  Cotta.  Has 
he  been  prevented  from  writing  by  business, 
or  illness  perhaps?  You  know  how  tardy  he 
always  is  about  writing.  Yesterday  (Mon- 
day) I  wrote  him  earnestly  again  concerning 
your  affair  (an  undertaking  of  such  moment 
for  science),  and  urged  upon  him  the  issuing 
of  the  fossil  and  fresh-water  fishes  in  alternate 
numbers.  In  the  mean  time,  I  fear  that  the 
protracted  delay  may  weigh  heavily  on  you 
and  your  friends.  A  man  so  laborious,  so 
gifted,  and  so  deserving  of  affection  as  you 
are  should  not  be  left  in  a  position  where 
lack  of  serenity  disturbs  his  power  of  work. 
You  will  then  surely  pardon  my  friendly  good- 
will toward  you,  my  dear  M.  Agassiz,  if  I  en- 


188  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

treat  you  to  make  use  of  the  accompanying 
small  credit.  You  would  do  more  for  me  I 
am  sure.  Consider  it  an  advance  which  need 
not  be  paid  for  years,  and  which  I  will  gladly 
increase  when  I  go  away  or  even  earlier.  It 
would  pain  me  deeply  should  the  urgency  of 
my  request  made  in  the  closest  confidence,  — 
in  short,  a  transaction  as  between  two  friends 
of  unequal  age,  —  be  disagreeable  to  you.  I 
should  wish  to  be  pleasantly  remembered  by  a 
young  man  of  your  character. 

Yours,  with  the  most  affectionate  respect, 
ALEXANDER  HUMBOLDT. 

With  this  letter  was  found  the  following 
note  of  acknowledgment,  scrawled  in  almost 
illegible  pencil  marks.  Whether  sent  exactly 
as  it  stands  or  not,  it  is  evidently  the  first  out- 
burst of  Agassiz's  gratitude. 

My  benefactor  and  friend,  —  it  is  too  much  ; 
I  cannot  find  words  to  tell  you  how  deeply 
your  letter  of  to-day  has  moved  me.  I  have 
just  been  at  your  house  that  I  might  thank 
you  in  person  with  all  my  heart ;  but  now  I 
must  wait  to  do  so  until  I  have  the  good  for- 
tune to  meet  you.  At  what  a  moment  does 
your  help  come  to  me  !  I  inclose  a  letter  from 


AGASSIZ    TO  HUMBOLDT.  189 

my  dear  mother  that  you  may  understand  my 
whole  position.  My  parents  will  now  readily 
consent  that  I  should  devote  myself  entirely  to 
science,  and  I  am  freed  from  the  distressing 
thought  that  I  may  be  acting  contrary  to  their 
wishes  and  their  will.  But  they  have  not  the 
means  to  help  me,  and  had  proposed  that  I 
should  return  to  Switzerland  and  give  lessons 
either  in  Geneva  or  Lausanne.  I  had  already 
resolved  to  follow  this  suggestion  in  the  course 
of  next  summer,  and  had  also  decided  to  part 
with  Mr.  Dinkel,  my  faithful  companion,  as 
soon  as  he  should  have  finished  the  most  in- 
dispensable drawings  of  the  fossils  on  which 
he  is  now  engaged  here.  I  meant  to  tell  you 
of  this  on  Sunday,  and  now  to-day  comes  your 
letter.  Imagine  what  must  have  been  my  feel- 
ing, after  having  resolved  on  renouncing  what 
till  now  had  seemed  to  me  noblest  and  most 
desirable  in  life,  to  find  myself  unexpectedly 
rescued  by  a  kind,  helpful  hand,  and  to  have 
again  the  hope  of  devoting  m^  whole  powers 
to  science,  —  you  can  judge  of  the  state  into 
which  your  letter  has  thrown  me.  .  .  . 

Soon  after  this  event  Agassiz  made  a  short 
excursion  with  Braun  and  Dinkel  to  the  coast 
of  Normandy ;  worth  noting,  because  he  now 


190  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

saw  the  sea  for  the  first  time.  He  wrote 
home :  "  For  five  days  we  skirted  the  coast 
from  Havre  to  Dieppe ;  at  last  I  have  looked 
upon  the  sea  and  its  riches.  From  this  ex- 
cursion of  a  few  days,  which  I  had  almost 
despaired  of  making,  I  bring  back  new  ideas, 
more  comprehensive  views,  and  a  more  accu- 
rate knowledge  of  the  great  phenomena  pre- 
sented by  the  ocean  in  its  vast  expanse." 

Meanwhile  the  hope  he  had  always  enter- 
tained of  finding  a  professorship  of  natural 
history  in  his  own  country  was  ripening  into 
a  definite  project.  His  first  letter  on  this 
subject  to  M.  Louis  Coulon,  himself  a  well- 
known  naturalist,  and  afterward  one  of  his 
warmest  friends  in  Neuchatel,  must  have  been 
written  just  before  he  received  from  Hum- 
boldt  the  note  of  the  same  date,  which  extri- 
cated him  from  his  pecuniary  embarrassment. 

AGASSIZ   TO   LOUIS   COULON. 

PARIS,  March  27,  1832. 

.  .  .  When  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
you  last  summer  I  several  times  expressed  my 
strong  desire  to  establish  myself  near  you,  and 
my  intention  of  taking  some  steps  toward  ob- 
taining the  professorship  of  natural  history 
to  be  founded  in  your  Lyceum.  The  matter 


PROFESSORSHIP  AT  NEUCHATEL.     191 

must  be  more  advanced  now  than  it  was  last 
year,  and  you  would  oblige  me  greatly  by  giv- 
ing me  some  information  concerning  it.  I 
have  spoken  of  my  project  to  M.  de  Humboldt, 
whom  I  often  see,  and  who  kindly  interests 
himself  about  my  prospects  and  helps  me  with 
his  advice.  He  thinks  that  under  the  circum- 
stances, and  especially  in  my  position,  meas- 
ures should  be  taken  in  advance.  There  is  an- 
other point  of  great  importance  for  me  about 
which  I  wished  also  to  speak  to  you.  Though 
you  have  seen  but  a  small  part  of  it,  you 
nevertheless  know  that  in  my  different  jour- 
neys, partly  through  my  relations  with  other 
naturalists,  partly  by  exchange,  I  have  made  a 
very  fair  collection  of  natural  history,  espe- 
cially rich  in  just  those  classes  which  are  less 
fully  represented  in  your  museum.  My  collec- 
tion might,  therefore,  fill  the  gaps  in  that  of 
the  city  of  Neuchatel,  and  make  the  latter 
more  than  adequate  for  the  illustration  of  a 
full  course  of  natural  history.  Should  an  in- 
crease of  your  zoological  collection  make  part 
of  your  plans  for  the  Lyceum,  I  venture  to 
believe  that  mine  would  fully  answer  your 
purpose.  In  that  case  I  would  offer  it  to  you, 
since  the  expense  of  arranging  it,  the  rent  of 
a  room  in  which  to  keep  it,  and,  in  short,  its 


192  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

support  in  general,  is  beyond  my  means.  I 
must  find  some  way  of  relieving  myself  from 
this  burden,  although  it  will  be  hard  to  part 
with  these  companions  of  my  study,  upon 
which  I  have  based  almost  all  my  investiga- 
tions. I  have  spoken  of  this  also  to  M.  de 
Humboldt,  who  is  good  enough  to  show  an 
interest  in  the  matter,  and  will  even  take  all 
necessary  steps  with  the  government  to  facili- 
tate this  purchase.  You  would  render  me  the 
greatest  service  by  giving  me  your  directions 
about  all  this,  and  especially  by  telling  me : 
1.  On  whom  the  nomination  to  the  professor- 
ship depends?  2.  With  whom  the  purchase 
of  the  collection  would  rest  ?  3.  What  you 
think  I  should  do  with  reference  to  both  ?  Of 
course  you  will  easily  understand  that  I  can- 
not give  up  my  collections  except  under  the 
condition  that  I  should  be  allowed  the  free  use 
of  them.  .  .  . 

The  answer  was  not  only  courteous,  but 
kind,  although  some  time  elapsed  before  the 
final  arrangements  were  made.  Meanwhile 
the  following  letter  shows  us  the  doubts  and 
temptations  which  for  a  moment  embarrassed 
Agassiz  in  his  decision.  The  death  of  Cuvier 
had  intervened. 


LETTER   TO  HUMBOLDT.  193 

AGASSIZ    TO   HUMBOLDT. 

PARIS,  May,  1832. 

...  I  would  not  write  you  until  I  had 
definite  news  from  Neuchatel.  Two  days  ago 
I  received  a  very  delightful  letter  from  M. 
Coulon,  which  I  hasten  to  share  with  you.  I 
will  not  copy  the  whole,  but  extract  the  essen- 
tial part.  He  tells  me  that  he  has  proposed  to 
the  Board  of  Education  the  establishment  of  a 
professorship  of  natural  history,  to  be  offered 
to  me.  The  proposition  met  with  a  cordial 
hearing.  The  need  of  such  a  professorship 
was  unanimously  recognized,  but  the  President 
explained  that  neither  would  the  condition  of 
the  treasury  allow  its  establishment  in  the 
present  year,  nor  could  the  proposition  be 
brought  before  the  Council  of  State  until  the 
opening  of  the  new  Lyceum. 

Monsieur  Coulon  was  commissioned  to  thank 
me,  and  to  request  me  in  the  name  of  the  board 
to  keep  the  place  in  mind ;  should  I  prefer 
it,  however,  he  doubts  not  that  whatever  the 
city  could  not  do  might  be  made  good  by 
subscription  before  next  autumn,  in  which 
case  I  could  enter  upon  office  at  once.  He 
requests  a  prompt  answer  in  order  that  he 
may  make  all  needful  preparations.  Only  too 

VOL.  L,  13 


194  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

gladly  would  I  have  consulted  you  about  vari- 
ous propositions  made  to  me  here  in  the  last 
few  days,  and  have  submitted  my  course  to 
your  approval,  had  it  not  been  that  here,  as  in 
Neuchatel,  a  prompt  answer  was  urged.  Al- 
though guided  rather  by  instinct  than  by  any- 
thing else,  I  think,  nevertheless,  that  I  have 
chosen  rightly.  In  such  moments,  when  one 
cannot  see  far  enough  in  advance  to  form  an 
accurate  judgment  upon  deliberation,  feeling 
is,  after  all,  the  best  adviser ;  that  inner  im- 
pulse, which  is  a  safe  guide  if  other  consid- 
erations do  not  confuse  the  judgment.  This 
says  to  me,  "  Go  to  Neuchatel ;  do  not  stay 
in  Paris."  But  I  speak  in  riddles;  I  must 
explain  myself  more  clearly.  Last  Monday 
Levrault  sent  for  me  in  order  to  propose  that 
Valenciennes  and  I  should  jointly  undertake 
the  publication  of  the  Cuvierian  fishes.  ...  I 
was  to  give  a  positive  answer  this  week.  I 
have  carefully  considered  it,  and  have  decided 
that  an  unconditional  engagement  would  lead 
me  away  from  my  nearest  aim,  and  from  what 
I  look  upon  as  the  task  of  my  life.  The  al- 
ready published  volumes  of  the  System  of 
Ichthyology  lie  too  far  from  the  road  on  which 
I  intend  to  pursue  my  researches.  Finally, 
it  seems  to  me  that  in  a  quiet  retired  place 


BIRTHDAY  FETE.  195 

like  Neuchatel,  whatever  may  be  growing  up 
within  me  will  have  a  more  independent  and 
individual  development  than  in  this  restless 
Paris,  where  obstacles  or  difficulties  may  not 
perhaps  divert  me  from  a  given  purpose,  but 
may  disturb  or  delay  its  accomplishment.  I 
will  therefore  so  shape  my  answer  to  Levrault 
as  to  undertake  only  single  portions  of  the 
work,  the  choice  of  these,  on  account  of  my 
interest  in  the  fossil  and  the  fresh-water  fishes, 
being  allowed  me,  with  the  understanding, 
also,  that  I  should  be  permitted  to  have  these 
collections  in  Switzerland  and  work  them  up 
there.  From  Paris,  also,  it  would  not  be  so 
easy  to  transfer  myself  to  Germany,  whereas 
I  could  consider  Neuchatel  as  a  provisional 
position  from  which  I  might  be  called  to  a 
German  university.  .  .  . 

In  the  mean  time,  while  waiting  hopefully 
the  result  of  his  negotiations  with  Neuchatel, 
Agassiz  had  organized  with  his  friends,  the  two 
Brauns,  a  bachelor  life  very  like  the  one  he 
and  Alexander  had  led  with  their  classmates  in 
Munich.  The  little  hotel  where  they  lodged 
had  filled  up  with  young  German  doctors,  who 
had  come  to  visit  the  hospitals  in  Paris  and 
study  the  cholera.  Some  of  these  young  men 


196  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

had  been  their  fellow-students  at  the  univer- 
sity, and  at  their  request  Agassiz  and  Braun 
resumed  the  practice  of  giving  private  lectures 
on  zoology  and  botany,  the  whole  being  con- 
ducted in  the  most  informal  manner,  admitting 
absolute  freedom  of  discussion,  as  among  inti- 
mate companions  of  the  same  age.  Such  an 
interchange  naturally  led  to  very  genial  rela- 
tions between  the  amateur  professors  and  their 
class,  and  on  the  eve  of  Agassiz's  birthday 
(28th  of  May)  his  usual  audience  prepared  for 
him  a  very  pleasant  surprise.  Returning  from 
a  walk  after  dusk  he  found  Braun  in  his  room. 
Continuing  his  stroll  within  four  walls,  he  and 
his  friend  paced  the  floor  together  in  earnest 
talk,  when,  at  a  signal,  Braun  suddenly  drew 
him  to  the  window,  threw  it  open,  and  on  the 
pavement  below  stood  their  companions,  sing- 
ing a  part  song,  composed  in  honor  of  Agas- 
siz. Deeply  moved,  he  withdrew  from  the  win- 
dow in  time  to  receive  them  as  they  trooped 
up  the  stairway  to  offer  their  good  wishes. 
They  presently  led  the  way  to  another  room 
which  they  had  dressed  with  flowers,  Agassiz's 
name,  among  other  decorations,  being  braided 
in  roses  beneath  two  federal  flags  crossed  on 
the  wall.  Here  supper  was  laid,  and  the  rest 
of  the  evening  passed  gayly  with  songs  and 


LETTER   TO  M.  COULON.  197 

toasts,  not  only  for  the  hero  of  the  feast  and 
for  friends  far  and  near,  but  for  the  progress 
of  science,  the  liberty  of  the  people,  and  the 
independence  of  nations.  There  could  be  no 
meeting  of  ardent  young  Germans  and  Swiss 
in  those  days  without  some  mingling  of  pa- 
triotic aspirations  with  the  sentiment  of  the 
hour. 

The  friendly  correspondence  between  Agas- 
siz  and  M.  Coulon  regarding  the  professorship 
at  Neuchatel  was  now  rapidly  bringing  the 
matter  to  a  happy  conclusion. 

AGASSIZ   TO   LOUIS   COULON. 

PARIS,  June  4,  1832. 

I  have  received  your  kind  letter  with  great 
pleasure  and  hasten  to  reply.  What  you  write 
gives  me  the  more  satisfaction  because  it 
opens  to  me  in  the  near  future  the  hope  of 
establishing  myself  in  your  neighborhood  and 
devoting  to  my  country  the  fruits  of  my  labor. 
It  is  true,  as  you  suppose,  that  the  death  of 
M.  Cuvier  has  sensibly  changed  my  position ; 
indeed,  I  have  already  been  asked  to  continue 
his  work  on  fishes  in  connection  with  M.  Va- 
lenciennes, who  made  me  this  proposition  the 
day  after  your  letter  reached  me.  The  condi- 
tions offered  me  are,  indeed,  very  tempting, 


198  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

but  I  am  too  little  French  by  character,  and 
too  anxious  to  live  in  Switzerland,  not  to  pre- 
fer the  place  you  can  offer  me,  however  small 
the  appointments,  if  they  do  but  keep  me 
above  actual  embarrassment.  I  say  thus  much 
only  in  order  to  answer  that  clause  in  your 
letter  where  you  touch  upon  this  question.  I 
would  add  that  I  leave  the  field  quite  free  in 
this  respect,  and  that  I  am  yours  without  re- 
serve, if,  indeed,  within  the  fortnight,  the  ur- 
gency of  the  Parisians  does  not  carry  the  day, 
or,  rather,  as  soon  as  I  write  you  that  I  have 
been  able  finally  to  withdraw.  You  easily  un- 
derstand that  I  cannot  bluntly  decline  offers 
which  seem  to  those  who  make  them  so  bril- 
liant. But  I  shall  hold  out  against  them  to 
the  utmost.  My  course  with  reference  to  my 
own  publications  will  have  shown  you  that  I 
do  not  care  for  a  lucrative  position  from  per- 
sonal interest ;  that,  on  the  contrary,  I  should 
always  be  ready  to  use  such  means  as  I  may 
have  at  my  disposition  for  the  advancement  of 
the  institution  confided  to  my  care. 

My  work  will  still  detain  me  for  four  or  five 
months  at  Paris,  —  my  time  being  after  that 
completely  at  my  disposal.  The  period  at 
which  I  should  like  to  begin  my  lectures  is 
therefore  very  near,  and  I  think  if  your  people 


APPOINTMENT  AT  NEUCHATEL.      199 

are  favorably  disposed  toward  the  creation  of 
a  new  professorship  we  must  not  let  them 
grow  cold.  But  you  have  shown  me  so  much 
kindness  that  I  may  well  leave  to  your  care, 
in  concert  with  your  friends,  the  decision  of 
this  point ;  the  more  so  since  you  are  willing 
to  take  charge  of  my  interests,  until  you  see 
the  success  of  what  you  are  pleased  to  look 
upon  as  an  advantage  to  your  institution, 
while  for  me  it  is  the  realization  of  a  sincere 
desire  to  do  what  I  can  for  the  advancement  of 
science,  and  the  instruction  of  our  youth.  .  .  . 

The  next  letter  from  M.  Coulon  (June  18, 
1832)  announces  that  the  sum  of  eighty  louis 
having  been  guaranteed  for  three  years,  chiefly 
by  private  individuals,  but  partly  also  by  the 
city,  they  were  now  able  to  offer  a  chair  of 
natural  history  at  once  to  their  young  coun- 
tryman. In  conclusion,  he  adds :  — 

"  I  can  easily  understand  that  the  brilliant 
offers  made  you  in  Paris  strongly  counterbal- 
ance a  poor  little  professorship  of  natural  his- 
tory at  Neuchatel,  and  may  well  cause  you  to 
hesitate  ;  especially  since  your  scientific  career 
there  is  so  well  begun.  On  the  other  hand, 
you  cannot  doubt  our  pleasure  in  the  pros- 
pect of  having  you  at  Neuchatel,  not  only 


200  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

because  of  the  friendship  felt  for  you  by 
many  persons  here,  but  also  on  account  of 
the  lustre  which  a  chair  of  natural  history  so 
filled  would  shed  upon  our  institution.  Of 
this  our  subscribers  are  well  aware,  and  it  ac- 
counts for  the  rapid  filling  of  the  list.  I  am 
very  anxious,  as  are  all  these  gentlemen,  to 
know  your  decision,  and  beg  you  therefore  to 
let  us  hear  from  you  as  soon  as  possible." 

A  letter  from  Humboldt  to  M.  Coulon, 
about  this  time,  is  an  earnest  of  his  watchful 
care  over  the  interests  of  Agassiz. 

HUMBOLDT   TO   LOUIS   COULON. 

POTSDAM,  July  25, 1832. 

...  I  do  not  write  to  ask  a  favor,  but 
only  to  express  my  warm  gratitude  for  your 
noble  and  generous  dealings  with  the  young 
savant,  M.  Agassiz,  who  is  well  worthy  your 
'encouragement  and  the  protection  of  your 
government.  He  is  distinguished  by  his  tal- 
ents, by  the  variety  and  substantial  character 
of  his  attainments,  and  by  that  which  has  a 
special  value  in  these  troubled  times,  his  natu- 
ral sweetness  of  disposition. 

Through  our  common  friend,  M.  von  Buch, 
I  have  known  for  many  years  that  you  study 
natural  history  with  a  success  equal  to  your 


LETTER    FROM  HUMBOLDT.  201 

zeal,  and  that  you  have  brought  together  fine 
collections,  which  you  place  at  the  disposal  of 
others  with  a  noble  liberality.  It  gratifies  me 
to  see  your  kindness  toward  a  young  man  to 
whom  I  am  so  warmly  attached  ;  whom  the  il- 
lustrious Cuvier,  also,  whose  loss  we  must  ever 
deplore,  would  have  recommended  with  the 
same  heartiness,  for  his  f aith,  like  mine,  was 
based  on  those  admirable  works  of  Agassiz 
which  are  now  nearly  completed.  .  .  . 

I  have  strongly  advised  M.  Agassiz  not  to 
accept  the  offers  made  to  him  at  Paris  since 
M.  Cuvier's  death,  and  his  decision  has  antici- 
pated my  advice.  How  happy  it  would  be  for 
him,  and  for  the  completion  of  the  excellent 
works  on  which  he  is  engaged,  could  he  this 
very  year  be  established  on  the  shores  of  your 
lake !  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  will  receive 
the  powerful  protection  of  your  worthy  gov- 
ernor, to  whom  I  shall  repeat  my  requests, 
and  who  honors  me,  as  well  as  my  brother, 
with  a  friendship  I  warmly  appreciate.  M. 
von  Buch  also  has  promised  me,  before  leav- 
ing Berlin  for  Bonn  and  Vienna,  to  add  his 
entreaty  to  mine.  .  .  .  He  is  almost  as  much 
interested  as  myself  in  M.  Agassiz  and  his 
work  on  fossil  fishes,  the  most  important  ever 
undertaken,  and  equally  exact  in  its  relation 


202  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

to  zoological  characters  and  to  geological  de- 
posits. .  .  . 

The  next  letter  from  Agassiz  to  his  influen- 
tial friend  is  written  after  his  final  acceptance 
of  the  Neuchatel  professorship. 

AGASSIZ   TO   HUMBOLDT. 

PARIS,  July,  1832. 

...  I  would  most  gladly  have  answered 
your  delightful  letter  at  once,  and  have  told 
you  how  smoothly  all  has  gone  at  Neuchatel. 
Your  letters  to  M.  de  Coulon  and  to  General 
von  Pfuel  have  wrought  marvels;  but  they 
are  now  inclined  to  look  upon  me  there  as  a 
wonder  from  the  deep,1  and  I  must  exert  my- 
self to  the  utmost  lest  my  actual  presence 
should  give  the  lie  to  fame.  It  is  all  right. 
I  shall  be  the  less  likely  to  relax  in  devotion 
to  my  work. 

The  real  reason  of  my  silence  has  been  that 
I  was  unwilling  to  acknowledge  so  many  evi- 
dences of  efficient  sympathy  and  friendly  en- 
couragement by  an  empty  letter.  I  wished 
especially  to  share  with  you  the  final  result  of 
my  investigations  on  the  fossil  fishes,  and  for 
that  purpose  it  was  necessary  to  revise  my 

1  Ein  blaues  Meerwunder. 


NEW  CLASSIFICATION  OF  FISHES.    203 

manuscripts  and  take  an  account  of  my  ta- 
bles in  order  to  condense  the  whole  in  a  few 
phrases.  I  have  already  told  you  that  the  in- 
vestigation of  the  living  fishes  had  suggested 
to  me  a  new  classification,  in  which  families  as 
at  present  circumscribed  respectively  received 
new,  and  to  my  thinking  more  natural  posi- 
tions, based  upon  other  considerations  than 
those  hitherto  brought  forward.  I  did  not  at 
first  lay  any  special  stress  on  my  classification. 
.  .  .  My  object  was  only  to  utilize  certain 
structural  characters  which  frequently  recur 
among  fossil  forms,  and  which  might  there- 
fore enable  me  to  determine  remains  hitherto 
considered  of  little  value.  .  .  .  Absorbed  in 
the  special  investigation,  I  paid  no  heed  to 
the  edifice  which  was  meanwhile  unconscious- 
ly building  itself  up.  Having  however  com- 
pleted the  comparison  of  the  fossil  species  in 
Paris,  I  wanted,  for  the  sake  of  an  easy  revis- 
ion of  the  same,  to  make  a  list  according  to 
their  succession  in  geological  formations,  with 
a  view  of  determining  the  characteristics  more 
exactly  and  bringing  them  by  their  enumera- 
tion into  bolder  relief.  What  was  my  joy  and 
surprise  to  find  that  the  simplest  enumeration 
of  the  fossil  fishes  according  to  their  geolog- 
ical succession  was  also  a  complete  statement 


204  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

of  the  natural  relations  of  the  families  among 
themselves  ;  that  one  might  therefore  read  the 
genetic  development  of  the  whole  class  in  the 
history  of  creation,  the  representation  of  the 
genera  and  species  in  the  several  families  be- 
ing therein  determined ;  in  one  word,  that  the 
genetic  succession  of  the  fishes  corresponds 
perfectly  with  their  zoological  classification, 
and  with  just  that  classification  proposed  by 
me.  The  question  therefore  in  characterizing 
formations  is  no  longer  that  of  the  numerical 
preponderance  of  certain  genera  and  species, 
but  of  distinct  structural  relations,  carried 
through  all  these  formations  according  to  a 
definite  direction,  following  each  other  in  an 
appointed  order,  and  recognizable  in  the  or- 
ganisms as  they  are  brought  forth.  ...  If 
my  conclusions  are  not  overturned  or  modi- 
fied through  some  later  discovery,  they  will 
form  a  new  basis  for  the  study  of  fossils. 
Should  you  communicate  my  discovery  to  oth- 
ers I  shall  be  especially  pleased,  because  it 
may  be  long  before  I  can  begin  to  publish  it 
myself,  and  many  may  be  interested  in  it. 
This  seems  to  me  the  most  important  of  my 
results,  though  I  have  also,  partly  from  per- 
fect specimens,  partly  from  fragments,  identi- 
fied some  five  hundred  extinct  species,  and 


DELAY  IN  PUBLICATION.  205 

more  than  fifty  extinct  genera,  beside  reestab- 
lishing three  families  no  longer  represented. 

Gotta  has  written  me  in  very  polite  terms 
that  he  could  not  undertake  anything  new  at 
present ;  he  would  rather  pay,  without  regard 
to  profit,  for  what  has  been  done  thus  far,  and 
lets  me  have  fifteen  hundred  francs.  This 
makes  it  possible  for  me  to  leave  Dinkel  in 
Paris  to  complete  the  drawings.  Although  it 
often  seems  to  me  hard,  I  must  reconcile  my- 
self to  the  thought  of  leaving  investigations 
which  are  actually  completed,  locked  up  in  my 
desk.  .  .  . 


CHAPTER  VII. 

1832-1834:  ^T.  25-27. 

Enters  upon  his  Professorship  at  Neuchatel.  —  First  Lecture. 
—  Success  as  a  Teacher.  —  Love  of  Teaching.  —  Influence 
upon  the  Scientific  Life  of  Neuchatel.  —  Proposal  from 
University  of  Heidelberg.  —  Proposal  declined.  —  Threat- 
ened Blindness.  —  Correspondence  with  Humboldt.  —  Mar- 
riage. —  Invitation  from  Charpentier.  —  Invitation  to  visit 
England.  —  Wollaston  Prize.  —  First  Number  of  "  Poissons 
Fossiles."  —  Review  of  the  Work. 

THE  following  autumn  Agassiz  assumed  the 
duties  of  his  professorship  at  Neuchatel.  His 
opening  lecture  "  Upon  the  Relations  between 
the  different  branches  of  Natural  History  and 
the  then  prevailing  tendencies  of  all  the 
Sciences  "  was  given  on  the  12th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1832,  at  the  Hotel  de  Ville.  Judged  by 
the  impression  made  upon  the  listeners  as  re- 
corded at  the  time,  this  introductory  discourse 
must  have  been  characterized  by  the  same 
broad  spirit  of  generalization  which  marked 
Agassiz' s  later  teaching.  Facts  in  his  hands 
fell  into  their  orderly  relation  as  parts  of  a 
connected  whole,  and  were  never  presented 


LOVE   OF  TEACHING.  207 

merely  as  special  or  isolated  phenomena. 
From  the  beginning  his  success  as  an  instruc- 
tor was  undoubted.  He  had,  indeed,  now  en- 
tered upon  the  occupation  which  was  to  be 
from  youth  to  old  age  the  delight  of  his  life. 
Teaching  was  a  passion  with  him,  and  his 
power  over  his  pupils  might  be  measured  by 
his  own  enthusiasm.  He  was  intellectually, 
as  well  as  socially,  a  democrat,  in  the  best 
sense.  He  delighted  to  scatter  broadcast  the 
highest  results  of  thought  and  research,  and 
to  adapt  them  even  to  the  youngest  and  most 
uninformed  minds.  In  his  later  American 
travels  he  would  talk  of  glacial  phenomena 
to  the  driver  of  a  country  stage-coach  among 
the  mountains,  or  to  some  workman,  splitting 
rock  at  the  road-side,  with  as  much  earnest- 
ness as  if  he  had  been  discussing  problems 
with  a  brother  geologist ;  he  would  take  the 
common  fisherman  into  his  scientific  confi- 
dence, telling  him  the  intimate  secrets  of  fish- 
structure  or  fish  -  embryology,  till  the  man 
in  his  turn  grew  enthusiastic,  and  began  to 
pour  out  information  from  the  stores  of  his 
own  rough  and  untaught  habits  of  observa- 
tion. Agassiz's  general  faith  in  the  suscepti- 
bility of  the  popular  intelligence,  however  un- 
trained, to  the  highest  truths  of  nature,  was 


208  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

contagious,  and  he  created  or  developed  that 
in  which  he  believed. 

In  Neuchatel  the  presence  of  the  young 
professor  was  felt  at  once  as  a  new  and  stimu- 
lating influence.  The  little  town  suddenly 
became  a  centre  of  scientific  activity.  A  so- 
ciety for  the  pursuit  of  the  natural  sciences, 
of  which  he  was  the  first  secretary,  sprang 
into  life.  The  scientific  collections,  which  had 
already  attained,  under  the  care  of  M.  Louis 
Coulon,  considerable  value,  presently  assumed 
the  character  and  proportions  of  a  well-or- 
dered museum.  In  M.  Coulon  Agassiz  found 
a  generous  friend  and  a  scientific  colleague 
who  sympathized  with  his  noblest  aspirations, 
and  was  ever  ready  to  sustain  all  his  efforts  in 
behalf  of  scientific  progress.  Together  they 
worked  in  arranging,  enlarging,  and  building 
up  a  museum  of  natural  history  which  soon 
became  known  as  one  of  the  best  local  institu- 
tions of  the  kind  in  Europe. 

Beside  his  classes  at  the  gymnasium,  Agas- 
siz collected  about  him,  by  invitation,  a  small 
audience  of  friends  and  neighbors,  to  whom 
he  lectured  during  the  winter  on  botany,  on 
zoology,  on  the  philosophy  of  nature.  The 
instruction  was  of  the  most  familiar  and  in- 
formal character,  and  was  continued  in  later 


METHOD  OF  TEACHING.  209 

years  for  his  own  children  and  the  children 
of  his  friends.  In  the  latter  case  the  subjects 
were  chiefly  geology  and  geography  in  connec- 
tion with  botany,  and  in  favorable  weather 
the  lessons  were  usually  given  in  the  open  air. 
One  can  easily  imagine  what  joy  it  must  have 
been  for  a  party  of  little  playmates,  boys  and 
girls,  to  be  taken  out  for  long  walks  in  the 
country  over  the  hills  about  Neuchatel,  and 
especially  to  Chaumont,  the  mountain  which 
rises  behind  it,  and  thus  to  have  their  lessons, 
for  which  the  facts  and  scenes  about  them  fur- 
nished subject  and  illustration,  combined  with 
pleasant  rambles.  From  some  high  ground 
affording  a  wide  panoramic  view  Agassiz 
would  explain  to  them  the  formation  of  lakes, 
islands,  rivers,  springs,  water-sheds,  hills,  and 
valleys.  He  always  insisted  that  physical  ge- 
ography could  be  better  taught  to  children  in 
the  vicinity  of  their  own  homes  than  by  books 
or  maps,  or  even  globes.  Nor  did  he  think  a 
varied  landscape  essential  to  such  instruction. 
Undulations  of  the  ground,  some  contrast  of 
hill  and  plain,  some  sheet  of  water  with  the 
streams  that  feed  it,  some  ridge  of  rocky  soil 
acting  as  a  water-shed,  may  be  found  every- 
where, and  the  relation  of  facts  shown  per- 
haps as  well  on  a  small  as  on  a  large  scale. 


VOL.  I.  14 


210  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

When  it  was  impossible  to  give  the  lessons 
out  of  doors,  the  children  were  gathered 
around  a  large  table,  where  each  one  had 
before  him  or  her  the  specimens  of  the  day, 
sometimes  stones  and  fossils,  sometimes  flow- 
ers, fruits,  or  dried  plants.  To  each  child  in 
succession  was  explained  separately  what  had 
first  been  told  to  all  collectively.  When  the 
talk  was  of  tropical  or  distant  countries  pains 
were  taken  to  procure  characteristic  specimens, 
and  the  children  were  introduced  to  dates, 
bananas,  cocoa-nuts,  and  other  fruits,  not  easily 
to  be  obtained  in  those  days  in  a  small  inland 
town.  They,  of  course,  concluded  the  lesson 
by  eating  the  specimens,  a  practical  illustration 
which  they  greatly  enjoyed.  A  very  large 
wooden  globe,  on  the  surface  of  which  the  va- 
rious features  of  the  earth  as  they  came  up 
for  discussion  could  be  shown,  served  to  make 
them  more  clear  and  vivid.  The  children  took 
their  own  share  in  the  instruction,  and  were 
themselves  made  to  point  out  and  describe 
that  which  had  just  been  explained  to  them. 
They  took  home  their  collections,  and  as  a 
preparation  for  the  next  lesson  were  often 
called  upon  to  classify  and  describe  some  unu- 
sual specimen  by  their  own  unaided  efforts. 
There  was  no  tedium  in  the  class.  Agassiz's 


INVITATION  TO  HEIDELBERG.         211 

lively,  clear,  and  attractive  method  of  teach- 
ing awakened  their  own  powers  of  observa- 
tion in  his  little  pupils,  and  to  some  at  least 
opened  permanent  sources  of  enjoyment. 

His  instructions  to  his  older  pupils  were 
based  on  the  same  methods,  and  were  no  less 
acceptable  to  them  than  to  the  children.  In 
winter  his  professional  courses  to  the  students 
were  chiefly  upon  zoology  and  kindred  topics ; 
in  the  summer  he  taught  them  botany  and 
geology,  availing  himself  of  the  fine  days  for 
excursions  and  practical  instruction  in  the 
field.  Professor  Louis  Favre,  speaking  of 
these  excursions,  which  led  them  sometimes 
into  the  gorges  of  the  Seyon,  sometimes  into 
the  forests  of  Chaumont,  says :  "  They  were 
fete  days  for  the  young  people,  who  found  in 
their  professor  an  active  companion,  full  of 
spirits,  vigor,  and  gayety,  whose  enthusiasm 
kindled  in  them  the  sacred  fire  of  science." 

It  was  not  long  before  his  growing  reputa- 
tion brought  him  invitations  from  elsewhere. 
One  of  the  first  of  these  was  from  Heidelberg. 

PROFESSOR   TIEDEMANN   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

HEIDELBERG,  December  4,  1832. 
.  .  .  Last  autumn,  when  I  had  the  pleasure 
of  meeting  you  in   Carlsruhe,  I  proposed  to 


212  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

you  to  give  some  lectures  on  Natural  History 
at  this  university.  Professor  Leuckart,  who 
till  now  represented  zoology  here,  is  called  to 
Freiburg,  and  you  would  therefore  be  the 
only  teacher  in  that  department.  The  uni- 
versity being  so  frequented,  a  numerous  audi- 
ence may  be  counted  upon.  The  zoological 
collection,  by  no  means  an  insignificant  one, 
is  open  to  your  use.  Professor  Leuckart  re- 
ceived a  salary  of  five  hundred  florins.  This 
is  now  unappropriated,  and  I  do  not  doubt 
that  the  government,  conformably  to  the  prop- 
osition of  the  medical  faculty,  would  give  you 
the  appointment  on  the  same  terms.  By  your 
knowledge  you  are  prepared  for  the  work  of 
an  able  academical  teacher.  My  advice  is, 
therefore,  that  you  should  not  bind  yourself 
to  any  lyceum  or  gymnasium,  as  a  permanent 
position ;  such  a  place  would  not  suit  a  cul- 
tivated scientific  man,  nor  does  it  offer  a  field 
for  an  accomplished  scholar.  Consider  care- 
fully, therefore,  a  question  which  concerns  the 
efficiency  of  your  life,  and  give  me  the  re- 
sult of  your  deliberation  as  soon  as  possible. 
Should  it  be  favorable  to  the  acceptance  of  my 
proposition,  I  hope  you  will  find  yourself  here 
at  Easter  as  full  professor,  with  a  salary  of 
five  hundred  florins,  and  a  fitting  field  of  ac- 


LETTER   TO  HUMBOLDT.  213 

tivity  for  your  knowledge.  The  fees  for  lec- 
tures and  literary  work  might  bring  you  in 
an  additional  fifteen  hundred  gulden  yearly. 
If  you  accede  to  this  offer  send  me  your  inau- 
gural dissertation,  and  make  me  acquainted 
with  your  literary  work,  that  I  may  take  the 
necessary  steps  with  the  Curatorio.  Consider 
this  proposition  as  a  proof  of  my  high  appre- 
ciation of  your  literary  efforts  and  of  my  re- 
gard for  you  personally. 

Agassiz's  next  letter  to  Humboldt  is  to  con- 
sult him  with  respect  to  the  call  from  Heidel- 
berg, while  it  is  also  full  of  pleasure  at  the 
warm  welcome  extended  to  him  in  Neuchatel. 


AGASSIZ   TO   HUMBOLDT. 


December,  1832. 

...  At  last  I  am  in  Neuchatel,  having,  in- 
deed, begun  my  lectures  some  weeks  ago.  I 
have  been  received  in  a  way  I  could  never  have 
anticipated,  and  which  can  only  be  due  to 
your  good-will  on  my  behalf  and  your  friendly 
recommendation.  You  have  my  warmest 
thanks  for  the  trouble  you  have  taken  about 
me,  and  for  your  continued  sympathy.  Let 
me  show  you  by  my  work  in  the  years  to  come, 
rather  than  by  words,  that  I  am  in  earnest 


214  LOUIS  AOASSIZ. 

about  science,  and  that  my  spirit  is  not  irre- 
sponsive to  a  noble  encouragement  such  as 
you  have  given  me. 

You  will  have  received  my  letter  from  Carls- 
ruhe.  Could  I  only  tell  you  all  that  I  have 
since  thought  and  observed  about  the  history 
of  our  earth's  development,  the  succession  of 
the  animal  populations,  and  their  genetic  clas- 
sification !  It  cannot  easily  be  compressed 
within  letter  limits;  I  will,  nevertheless,  at- 
tempt it  when  my  lectures  make  less  urgent 
claim  upon  me,  and  my  eyes  are  less  fatigued. 
I  should  defer  writing  till  then  were  it  not 
that  to-day  I  have  something  of  at  least  out- 
side interest  to  announce.  It  concerns  the  in- 
closed letter  received  to-day.  (The  offer  of 
a  professorship  at  Heidelberg.)  Should  you 
think  that  I  need  not  take  it  into  considera- 
tion, and  you  have  no  time  to  answer  me,  let 
me  know  your  opinion  by  your  silence.  I  will 
tell  you  the  reasons  which  would  induce  me 
to  remain  for  the  present  in  Neuchatel,  and  I 
think  you  will  approve  them.  First,  as  my 
lectures  do  not  claim  a  great  part  of  my  time 
I  shall  have  the  more  to  bestow  on  other  work ; 
add  to  this  the  position  of  Neuchatel,  so  favor- 
able for  observations  such  as  I  propose  making 
on  the  history  of  development  in  several  classes 


LETTER    TO  HUMBOLDT.  215 

of  animals ;  then  the  hope  of  freeing  myself 
from  the  burden  of  my  collections ;  and  next, 
the  quiet  of  my  life  here  with  reference  to 
my  somewhat  overstrained  health.  Beside  my 
wish  to  remain,  these  favorable  circumstances 
furnish  a  powerful  motive,  and  then  I  am  sat- 
isfied that  people  here  would  assist  me  with 
the  greatest  readiness  should  my  publications 
not  succeed  otherwise.  As  to  the  publication 
of  my  fishes,  T  can,  after  all,  better  direct  the 
lithographing  of  the  plates  here.  I  have  just 
written  to  Cotta  concerning  this,  proposing 
also  that  he  should  advance  the  cost  of  the 
lithographs.  I  shall  attend  to  it  all  carefully, 
and  be  content  for  the  present  with  my  small 
means.  Prom  the  gradual  sale  he  can,  little 
by  little,  repay  my  expenses,  and  I  shall  ask 
no  profit  until  the  success  of  the  work  war- 
rants it.  I  await  his  answer.  This  proposal 
seems  to  me  the  best  and  the  most  likely  to 
advance  the  publication  of  this  work. 

Since  I  arrived  here  some  scientific  efforts 
have  been  made  with  the  help  of  M.  Cou- 
lon.  We  have  already  founded  a  society  of 
Natural  History,1  and  I  hope,  should  you 
make  your  promised  visit  next  year,  you  will 
find  this  germ  between  foliage  and  flower  at 

1  Societe  des  Sciences  Naturelles  de  NeuehStel. 


216  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

least,  though  perhaps  not  yet  ripened  into 
seed.  .  .  . 

M.  Coulon  told  me  the  day  before  yester- 
day that  he  had  spoken  with  M.  de  Montmol- 
lin,  the  Treasurer,  who  would  write  to  M.  An- 
cillon  concerning  the  purchase  of  my  collec- 
tion. .  .  .  Will  you  have  the  kindness,  when 
occasion  offers,  to  say  a  word  to  M.  Ancillon 
about  it  ?  ...  Not  only  would  this  collection 
be  of  the  greatest  value  to  the  museum  here, 
but  its  sale  would  also  advance  my  farther 
investigations.  With  the  sum  of  eighty  louis, 
which  is  all  that  is  subscribed  for  my  profes- 
sorship, I  cannot  continue  them  on  any  large 
scale. 

I  await  now  with  anxiety  Cotta's  answer 
to  my  last  proposition;  but  whatever  it  be, 
I  shall  begin  the  lithographing  of  the  plates 
immediately  after  the  New  Year,  as  they  must 
be  carried  on  under  my  own  eye  and  direction. 
This  I  can  well  do  since  my  uncle,  Dr.  Mayor 
in  Lausanne,  gives  me  fifty  louis  toward  it, 
the  amount  of  one  year's  pay  to  Weber,  my 
former  lithographer  in  Munich.  I  have  there- 
fore written  him  to  come,  and  expect  him 
after  New  Year.  With  my  salary  I  can  also 
henceforth  keep  Dinkel,  who  is  now  in  Paris, 
drawing  the  last  fossils  which  I  described.  .  .  . 


HUMBOLDT  TO  M.   COULON.  217 

No  answer  to  this  letter  has  been  found 
beyond  such  as  is  implied  in  the  following  to 
M.  Coulon. 

HUMBOLDT   TO   M.    COULON,    FILS. 

BERLIN,  January  21, 1833. 

...  It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  acknowl- 
edge the  flattering  welcome  offered  by  you 
and  your  fellow-citizens  to  M.  Agassiz,  who 
stands  so  high  in  science,  and  whose  intel- 
lectual qualities  are  enhanced  by  his  amiable 
character.  They  write  me  from  Heidelberg 
that  they  intend  the  place  of  M.  Leuckart  in 
zoology  for  my  young  friend.  The  choice  is 
proposed  by  M.  Tiedemann,  and  certainly  noth- 
ing could  be  more  honorable  to  M.  Agassiz. 
Nevertheless,  I  hope  that  he  will  refuse  it. 
He  should  remain  for  some  years  in  your 
country,  where  a  generous  encouragement  fa- 
cilitates the  publication  of  his  work,  which  is 
of  equal  importance  to  zoology  and  geology. 

I  have  spoken  with  M.  Ancillon,  and  have 
left  with  him  an  official  notice  respecting  the 
purchase  of  the  Agassiz  collection.  The  dif- 
ficulty will  be  found,  as  in  all  human  affairs, 
in  the  prose  of  life,  in  money.  M.  Ancillon 
writes  me  this  morning  :  "  Your  paper  in  fa- 
vor of  M.  Agassiz  is  a  scientific  letter  of  credit 


218  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

which  we  shall  try  to  honor.  The  acquisition 
of  a  superior  man  and  a  superior  collection 
at  the  same  time  would  be  a  double  conquest 
for  the  principality  of  Neuchatel.  I  have  re- 
quested a  report  from  the  Council  of  State  on 
the  means  of  accomplishing  this,  and  I  hope 
that  private  individuals  may  do  something 
toward  it."  Thus  you  see  the  affair  is  at 
least  on  the  right  road.  I  do  not  think,  how- 
ever, that  the  royal  treasury  will  give  at  pres- 
ent more  than  a  thousand  Prussian  crowns 
toward  it.  ... 

Regarding  the  invitation  to  Heidelberg, 
Agassiz's  decision  was  already  made.  A  letter 
to  his  brother  toward  the  close  of  December 
mentions  that  he  is  offered  a  professorship  at 
the  University  of  Heidelberg,  but  that,  al- 
though his  answer  has  not  actually  gone,  he 
has  resolved  to  decline  it ;  adding  that  the 
larger  salary  is  counterbalanced  in  his  mind 
by  the  hope  of  selling  his  collection  at  Neu- 
chatel, and  thus  freeing  himself  from  a  heavy 
burden. 

Agassiz  was  now  threatened  with  a  great 
misfortune.  Already,  in  Paris,  his  eyes  had 
begun  to  suffer  from  the  strain  of  microscopic 
work.  They  now  became  seriously  impaired ; 


THREATENED    WITH  BLINDNESS.      219 

and  for  some  months  he  was  obliged  to  abate 
his  activity,  and  to  refrain  even  from  writing 
a  letter.  During  this  time,  while  he  was  shut 
up  in  a  darkened  room,  he  practiced  the  study 
of  fossils  by  touch  alone,  using  even  the  tip 
of  the  tongue  to  feel  out  the  impression,  when 
the  fingers  were  not  sufficiently  sensitive.  He 
said  he  was  sure  at  the  time  that  he  could 
bring  himself  in  this  way  to  such  delicacy  of 
touch  that  the  loss  of  sight  would  not  oblige 
him  to  abandon  his  work.  After  some  months 
his  eyes  improved,  and  though  at  times  threat- 
ened with  a  return  of  the  same  malady,  he 
was  able,  throughout  life,  to  use  his  eyes  more 
uninterruptedly  than  most  persons.  His  lec- 
tures, always  delivered  extemporaneously,  do 
not  seem  to  have  been  suspended  for  any 
length  of  time. 

The  following  letter  from  Agassiz  to  Hum- 
boldt  is  taken  from  a  rough  and  incomplete 
draught,  which  was  evidently  put  aside  (per- 
haps on  account  of  the  trouble  in  his  eyes), 
and  only  completed  in  the  following  May. 
Although  imperfect,  it  explains  Humboldt's 
answer,  which  is  not  only  interesting  in  itself, 
but  throws  light  on  Agassiz's  work  at  this 
period. 


220  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 


AGASSIZ   TO   HUMBOLDT. 


NEUCHATEL,  January  27,  1833. 
...  A  thousand  thanks  for  your  last  most 
welcome  letter.  I  can  hardly  tell  you  what 
pleasure  it  gave  me,  or  how  I  am  cheered  and 
stimulated  to  new  activity  by  intercourse  with 
you  on  so  intimate  a  footing.  Since  I  wrote 
you,  some  things  have  become  more  clear  to  me, 
as,  for  instance,  my  purpose  of  publishing  the 
"  Fossil  Fishes  "  here.  Certain  doubts  remain 
in  my  mind,  however,  about  which,  as  well  as 
about  other  matters,  I  would  ask  your  advice. 
Now  that  Cotta  is  dead,  I  cannot  wait  till  I 
have  made  an  arrangement  with  his  successor. 
I  therefore  allow  the  "  Fresh- Water  Fishes  "  to 
lie  by  and  drive  on  the  others.  Upon  careful 
examination  I  have  found,  to  my  astonishment, 
that  all  necessary  means  for  the  publication  of 
such  a  work  are  to  be  had  here :  two  good 
lithographers  and  two  printing  establishments, 
both  of  which  have  excellent  type.  I  have 
sent  for  Weber  to  engrave  the  plates,  or  draw 
them  on  stone ;  he  will  be  here  at  the  end  of 
the  month.  Then  I  shall  begin  at  once,  and 
hope  in  May  to  send  out  the  first  number. 
The  great  difficulty  remains  now  in  the  distri- 
bution of  the  numbers,  and  in  finding  a  suffi- 


LETTER   TO  HUMBOLDT.  221 

cient  sale  so  that  they  may  follow  each  other 
with  regularity.  I  think  it  better  to  begin  the 
publication  as  a  whole  than  to  send  out  an 
abridgment  in  advance.  The  species  can  be 
characterized  only  by  good  illustrations.  A 
summary  always  requires  farther  demonstra- 
tion, whereas,  if  I  give  the  plates  at  once  I 
can  shorten  the  text  and  present  the  general 
results  as  an  introduction  to  the  first  number. 
With  twelve  numbers,  of  twenty  plates  each, 
followed  by  about  ten  pages  of  text,  I  can  tell 
all  that  I  have  to  say.  The  cost  of  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  copies  printed  here  would,  ac- 
cording to  careful  inquiry,  be  covered  by 
seventy  subscriptions  if  the  price  were  put  at 
one  louis-d'or  the  number. 

Now  comes  the  question  whether  I  should 
print  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  copies. 
On  account  of  the  expense  I  shall  not  pre- 
serve the  stones.  For  the  distribution  of  the 
copies  and  the  collecting  of  the  money  could 
you,  perhaps,  recommend  me  to  some  house  in 
Berlin  or  Leipzig,  who  would  take  the  work 
for  sale  in  Germany  on  commission  under  rea- 
sonable conditions?  For  England,  I  wrote 
yesterday  to  Lyell,  and  to-morrow  I  shall  write 
to  Levrault  and  Bossange. 

Both  the  magistrates  and  private  individ- 


222  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

uals  here  are  now  much  interested  in  public 
instruction,  and  I  am  satisfied  that  sooner  or 
later  my  collection  will  be  purchased,  though 
nothing  has  been  said  about  it  lately.1 

For  a  closer  description  of  my  family  of 
Lepidostei,  to  which  belong  all  the  ante-chalk 
bony  fishes,  I  am  anxious  to  have  for  dissec- 
tion a  Polypterus  Bichir  and  a  Lepidosteus 
osseus,  or  any  other  species  belonging  exclu- 
sively to  the  present  creation.  Hitherto,  I 
have  only  been  able  to  examine  and  describe 
the  skeleton  and  external  parts.  If  you  could 
obtain  a  specimen  of  both  for  me  you  would 
do  me  the  greatest  service.  If  necessary,  I 
will  engage  to  return  the  preparations.  I  beg 
for  this  most  earnestly.  Forgive  the  many 
requests  contained  in  this  letter,  and  see  in  it 
only  my  ardent  desire  to  reach  my  aim,  in 
which  you  have  already  helped  me  so  often 
and  so  kindly. 

HUMBOLDT  TO  AGASSIZ. 

SANS  Souci,  July  4,  1833. 

...  I  am  happy  in  your  success,  my  dear 
Agassiz,  happy  in  your  charming  letter  of 
May  22d,  happy  in  the  hope  of  having  been 

1  His  collection  was  finally  purchased  by  the  city  of  Neu- 
chatel  in  the  spring  of  1833. 


LETTER   FROM  HUMBOLDT.  223 

able  to  do  something  that  may  be  useful  to 
you  for  the  subscription.  The  Prince  Royal's 
name  seemed  to  me  rather  important  for  you. 
I  have  delayed  writing,  not  because  I  am  one 
of  the  most  persecuted  men  in  Europe  (the 
persecution  goes  on  crescendo ;  there  is  not  a 
scholar  in  Prussia  or  Germany  having  any- 
thing to  ask  of  the  King,  or  of  M.  d'Altenstein, 
who  does  not  think  it  necessary  to  make  me 
his  agent,  with  power  of  attorney),  but  be- 
cause it  was  necessary  to  await  the  Prince 
Royal's  return  from  his  military  circuit,  and 
the  opportunity  of  speaking  to  him  alone, 
which  does  not  occur  when  I  am  with  the 
King. 

Your  prospectus  is  full  of  interest,  and  does 
ample  justice  to  those  who  have  provided  you 
with  materials.  To  name  me  among  them 
was  an  affectionate  deceit,  the  ruse  of  a  noble 
soul  like  yours ;  I  am  a  little  vexed  with  you 
about  it.1 

1  The  few  words  which  called  forth  this  protest  from  Hum- 
boldt  were  as  follows.  After  naming  all  those  from  whom  he 
had  received  help  in  specimens  or  otherwise,  Agassiz  con- 
cludes :  — 

"  Finally,  I  owe  to  M.  de  Humboldt  not  only  important 
notes  on  fossil  fishes,  but  so  many  kindnesses  hi  connection 
with  my  work  that  in  enumerating  them  I  should  fear  to 
wound  the  delicacy  of  the  giver."  This  will  hardly  seem  an 
exaggeration  to  those  who  know  the  facts  of  the  case. 


224  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Here  is  the  beginning  of  a  list.  I  think 
the  Department  of  the  Mines  de  Province  will 
take  three  or  four  more  copies.  We  have  not 
their  answer  yet.  Do  not  be  frightened  at  the 
brevity  of  the  list.  ...  I  am,  however,  the 
least  apt  of  all  men  in  collecting  subscriptions, 
seeing  no  one  but  the  court,  and  forced  to  be 
out  of  town  three  or  four  days  in  the  week. 
On  account  of  this  same  inaptitude,  I  beg  you 
to  send  me,  through  the  publisher,  only  my 
own  three  copies,  and  to  address  the  others, 
through  the  publisher  also,  to  the  individuals 
named  on  the  list,  merely  writing  on  each  copy 
that  the  person  has  subscribed  on  the  list  of 
M.  de  Humboldt. 

With  all  my  affection  for  you,  my  dear 
friend,  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to  take 
charge  of  the  distribution  of  your  numbers 
or  the  returns.  The  publishing  houses  of 
Dummler  or  of  Humblot  and  Dunker  would 
be  useful  to  you  at  Berlin.  I  find  it  difficult 
to  believe  that  you  will  navigate  successfully 
among  these  literary  corsairs !  I  have  had  a 
short  eulogium  of  your  work  inserted  in  the 
Berliner  Staats-Zeitung.  You  see  that  I  do 
not  neglect  your  interests,  and  that,  for  love 
of  you,  I  even  turn  journalist.  You  have 
omitted  to  state  in  your  prospectus  whether 


LETTER  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  225 

your  plates  are  lithographed,  as  I  fear  they 
are,  and  also  whether  they  are  colored,  which 
seems  to  me  unnecessary.  Have  your  superb 
original  drawings  remained  in  your  posses- 
sion, or  are  they  included  in  the  sale  of  your 
collection?  .  .  . 

I  could  not  make  use  of  your  letter  to  the 
King,  and  I  have  suppressed  it.  You  have 
been  ill-advised  as  to  the  forms.  "  Erhabener 
Konig  "  has  too  poetical  a  turn ;  we  have  here 
the  most  prosaic  and  the  most  degrading  offi- 
cial expressions.  M.  de  Pfuel  must  have  some 
Arch-Prussian  with  him,  who  would  arrange 
the  formula  of  a  letter  for  you.  At  the  head 
there  must  be  "  Most  enlightened,  most  power- 
ful King,  —  all  gracious  sovereign  and  lord." 
Then  you  begin,  "  Your  Royal  Majesty,  deep- 
ly moved,  I  venture  to  lay  at  your  feet  most 
humbly  my  warmest  thanks  for  the  support 
so  graciously  granted  to  the  purchase  of  my 
collection  for  the  Gymnasium  in  Neuchatel. 
Did  I  know  how  to  write,"  etc.  The  rest  of 
your  letter  was  very  good ;  put  only  "  so  much 
grace  as  to  answer  "  instead  of  "  so  much  kind- 
ness." You  should  end  with  the  words,  "  I 
remain  till  death,  in  deepest  reverence,  the 
most  humble  and  faithful  servant  of  your 
Royal  Majesty."  The  whole  on  small  folio, 

VOL.  I.  15 


226  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

sealed,  addressed  outside,  "  To  the  King's  Maj- 
esty, Berlin."  Send  the  letter,  not  through  me, 
but  officially,  through  M.  de  Pfiiel.1 

The  letter  to  the  King  is  not  absolutely 
necessary,  but  it  will  give  pleasure,  for  the 
King  likes  any  affectionate  demonstration  from 
the  country  that  has  now  become  yours.2  It 
will  be  useful,  also,  with  reference  to  our  re- 
quest for  the  purchase  of  some  copies,  which 
we  will  make  to  the  King  as  soon  as  the  first 
number  has  appeared.  Had  I  obtained  the 
King's  name  for  you  to-day  (which  would  have 
been  difficult,  since  the  King  detests  subscrip- 
tions), we  should  have  spoiled  the  sequence. 
It  seems  to  me  that  a  letter  of  acknowledg- 

1  At  the  head  there  must  be  "Allerdurchlauchtigster,  gross- 
machtigster  Konig,  —  allergnadigster  Kb'nig  und  Herr."  Then 
you  begin,  "  Euer  kbniglichen  Majestat,  wage  ich  meinen  leb- 
haftesten  Dank  fur  die  allergnadigst  bewilligte    Unterstii- 
tzung  zum  Ankauf  meiner  Sammlung  fiir  das  Gymnasium 
in  Neuchatel  tief  geriihrt  allerunterthanigst  zu  Fiissen  zu 
legen.    Wiisste  ich  zu  schreiben,"  etc.    The  rest  of  your  let- 
ter was  very  good, — put  only,  "  so  vieler  Gnade  zu  entspre- 
chen"  instead  of  "so  vieler  Giite."     You  should  end  with 
the  words,  "  Ich  ersterbe  in  tief  ster  Ehrf  urcht  Euer  konigli- 
cher  Majestat  aller  unter  thanigsten  getreuester."   The  whole 
on  small  folio,  sealed,  addressed  outside,  "An  des  Konig's 
Majestat,  Berlin." 

These  forms  are  no  longer  in  use.     They  belong  to  a  past 
generation. 

2  It  may  not  be  known  to  all  readers  that  Neuchatel  was 
then  under  Prussian  sovereignty. 


LETTER  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  227 

ment  from  you  to  M.  Ancillon  would  be  very 
suitable  also.  Do  not  think  it  is  too  late. 
One  addresses  him  as  "  Monsieur  et  plus  votre 
Excellence."  I  am  writing  the  most  pedantic 
letter  in  the  world  in  answer  to  yours,  so  full 
of  charm.  It  must  seem  to  you  absurd  that 
I  write  you  in  French,  when  you,  French  by 
origin,  or  rather  by  language,  prefer  to  write 
me  in  German.  Pray  tell  me,  did  you  learn 
German,  which  you  write  with  such  purity,  as 
a  child  ? 

I  am  happy  to  see  that  you  publish  the 
whole  together.  The  parceling  out  of  such 
a  work  would  have  led  to  endless  delays ;  but, 
for  mercy's  sake,  take  care  of  your  eyes ;  they 
are  ours.  I  have  not  neglected  the  subscrip- 
tions in  Russia,  but  I  have,  as  yet,  no  answer. 
At  a  venture,  I  have  placed  the  name  of  M. 
von  Buch  on  my  list.  He  is  absent ;  it  is  said 
that  he  will  go  to  Greece  this  summer.  Pray 
make  it  a  rule  not  to  give  away  copies  of  your 
work.  If  you  follow  that  inclination  you  will 
be  pecuniarily  ruined. 

I  wish  I  could  have  been  present  at  your 
course  of  lectures.  What  you  tell  me  of  them 
delights  me,  though  I  am  ready  to  do  battle 
with  you  about  those  metamorphoses  of  our 
globe  which  have  even  slipped  into  your  title. 


228  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

I  see  by  your  letter  that  you  cling  to  the  idea 
of  internal  vital  processes  of  the  earth,  that 
you  regard  the  successive  formations  as  differ- 
ent phases  of  life,  the  rocks  as  products  of 
metamorphosis.  I  think  this  symbolical  lan- 
guage should  be  employed  with  great  reserve. 
I  know  that  point  of  view  of  the  old  "  Natur- 
philosophie  ;  "  I  have  examined  it  without  pre- 
judice, but  nothing  seems  to  me  more  dissimi- 
lar than  the  vital  action  of  the  metamorphosis 
of  a  plant  in  order  to  form  the  calyx  or  the 
flower,  and  the  successive  formation  of  beds 
of  conglomerate.  There  is  order,  it  is  true, 
in  the  superposed  beds,  sometimes  an  alterna- 
tion of  the  same  substance,  an  interior  cause, 
—  sometimes  even  a  successive  development, 
starting  from  a  central  heat;  but  can  the 
term  life  be  applied  to  this  kind  of  move- 
ment? Limestone  does  not  generate  sand- 
stone. I  do  not  know  that  there  exists  what 
physiologists  call  a  vital  force,  different  from, 
or  opposed  to,  the  physical  forces  which  we 
recognize  in  all  matter;  I  think  the  vital 
process  is  only  a  particular  mode  of  action,  of 
limitation  of  those  physical  forces ;  action,  the 
nature  of  which  we  have  not  yet  fully  sounded. 
I  believe  there  are  nervous  storms  (electric) 
like  those  which  set  fire  to  the  atmosphere, 


LETTER  FROM   HUMBOLDT.  229 

but  that  special  action  which  we  call  organic, 
in  which  every  part  becomes  cause  or  effect, 
seems  to  me  distinct  from  the  changes  which 
our  planet  has  undergone.  I  pause  here,  for 
I  feel  that  I  must  annoy  you,  and  I  care  for 
you  too  much  to  run  that  risk.  Moreover,  a 
superior  man  like  yourself,  my  dear  friend, 
floats  above  material  things  and  leaves  a  mar- 
gin for  philosophic  doubt. 

Farewell;  count  on  the  little  of  life  that 
remains  to  me,  and  on  my  affectionate  devo- 
tion. At  twenty-six  years  of  age,  and  pos- 
sessed of  so  much  knowledge,  you  are  only 
entering  upon  life,  while  I  am  preparing  to 
depart ;  leaving  this  world  far  different  from 
what  I  hoped  it  would  be  in  my  youth.  I 
will  not  forget  the  Bichir  and  the  Lepidosteus. 
Remember  always  that  your  letters  give  me 
the  greatest  pleasure.  .  .  . 

[P.  S.]  Look  carefully  at  the  new  number 
of  Poggendorf,  in  which  you  will  find  beauti- 
ful discoveries  of  Ehrenberg  (microscopical) 
on  the  difference  of  structure  between  the 
brain  and  the  nerves  of  motion,  also  upon  the 
crystals  forming  the  silvered  portion  of  the 
peritoneum  of  Esox  lucius. 


230  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

In  October,  1833,  Agassiz's  marriage  to 
Cecile  Braun,  the  sister  of  his  life-long  friend, 
Alexander  Braun,  took  place.  He  brought 
his  wife  home  to  a  small  apartment  in  Neu- 
chatel,  where  they  began  their  housekeeping 
after  the  simplest  fashion,  with  such  economy 
as  their  very  limited  means  enforced.  Her 
rare  artistic  talent,  hitherto  devoted  to  her 
brother's  botanical  pursuits,  now  found  a  new 
field.  Trained  to  accuracy  in  drawing  objects 
of  Natural  History,  she  had  an  artist's  eye  for 
form  and  color.  Some  of  the  best  drawings 
in  the  Fossil  Fishes  and  the  Fresh  -  Water 
Fishes  are  from  her  hand.  Throughout  the 
summer,  notwithstanding  the  trouble  in  his 
eyes,  Agassiz  had  been  still  pressing  on  these 
works.  His  two  artists,  Mr.  Dinkel  and  Mr. 
Weber,  the  former  in  Paris,  the  latter  in  Neu- 
chatel,  were  constantly  busy  on  his  plates. 

Although  Agassiz  was  at  this  time  only 
twenty-six  years  of  age,  his  correspondence 
already  shows  that  the  interest  of  scientific 
men,  all  over  Europe,  was  attracted  to  him 
and  to  his  work.  From  investigators  of  note 
in  his  own  country,  from  those  of  France, 
Italy,  and  Germany,  from  England,  and  even 
from  America,  the  distant  El  Dorado  of  natu- 
ralists in  those  days,  came  offers  of  coopera- 


INVITED   TO    VISIT  ENGLAND.         231 

tion,  accompanied  by  fossil  fishes  or  by  the 
drawings  of  rare  or  unique  specimens.  He 
was  known  in  all  the  museums  of  Europe  as 
an  indefatigable  worker  and  collector,  seeking 
everywhere  materials  for  comparison. 

Among  the  letters  of  this  date  is  one  from 
Charpentier,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  glacial 
investigation,  under  whose  auspices,  two  years 
later,  Agassiz  began  his  inquiries  into  glacial 
phenomena.  He  writes  him  from  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Bex,  his  home  in  the  valley  of  the 
Rhone,  the  classic  land  of  glacial  work ;  but 
he  writes  of  Agassiz's  special  subjects,  inviting 
him  to  come  and  see  such  fossils  as  were  to  be 
found  in  his  neighborhood,  and  to  investigate 
certain  phenomena  of  upheaval  and  of  plu- 
tonic  action  in  the  same  region,  little  dream- 
ing that  the  young  zoologist  was  presently 
to  join  him  in  his  own  chosen  field  of  re- 
search. 

Agassiz  now  began  also  to  receive  pressing 
invitations  from  the  English  naturalists,  from 
Buckland,  Lyell,  Murchison,  and  others,  to 
visit  England,  and  examine  their  wonderful 
collections  of  fossil  remains. 


232  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

FROM   PROFESSOR   BUCKLAND   TO   AGASSIZ. 

OXFORD,  December  25,  1833. 

...  I  should  very  much  like  to  put  into 
your  hands  what  few  materials  I  possess  in  the 
Oxford  Museum  relating  to  fossil  fishes,  and 
am  also  desirous  that  you  should  see  the  fos- 
sil fish  in  the  various  provincial  museums  of 
England,  as  well  as  in  London.  Sir  Philip 
Egerton  has  a  very  large  collection  of  fishes 
from  Engi  and  Oeningen,  which  he  wishes  to 
place  at  your  disposition.  Like  myself,  he 
would  willingly  send  you  drawings,  but  draw- 
ings made  without  knowledge  of  the  ana- 
tomical details  which  you  require,  cannot  well 
represent  what  the  artist  himself  does  not 
perceive.  I  would  willingly  lend  you  my  spec- 
imens, if  I  could  secure  them  against  the 
barbarous  hands  of  the  custom-house  officials. 
What  I  would  propose  to  you  as  a  means  of 
seeing  all  the  collections  of  England,  and 
gaining  at  the  same  time  additional  subscrip- 
tions for  your  work,  is,  that  you  should  come 
to  England  and  attend  the  British  Associa- 
tion for  the  Advancement  of  Science  in  Sep- 
tember next.  There  you  will  meet  all  the 
naturalists  of  England,  and  I  do  not  doubt 
that  among  them  you  will  find  a  good  many 


LETTER  FROM  BUCKLAND.  233 

subscribers.  You  will  likewise  see  a  new  mine 
of  fossil  fishes  in  the  clayey  schist  of  the  coal 
formation  at  Newhaven,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Forth,  near  Edinburgh.  You  can  also  make 
arrangements  to  visit  the  museums  of  York, 
Whitby,  Scarborough,  and  Leeds,  as  well  as 
the  museum  of  Sir  Philip  Egerton,  on  your 
way  to  and  from  Edinburgh.  You  may,  like- 
wise, visit  the  museums  of  London,  Cam- 
bridge, and  Oxford;  everywhere  there  are 
fossil  fishes ;  and  traveling  by  coach  in  Eng- 
land is  so  rapid,  easy,  and  cheap,  that  in  six 
weeks  or  less  you  can  accomplish  all  that  I  have 
proposed.  As  I  seriously  hope  that  you  will 
come  to  England  for  the  months  of  August 
and  September,  I  say  nothing  at  present  of  any 
other  means  of  putting  into  your  hands  the 
drawings  or  specimens  of  our  English  fossil 
fishes.  I  forgot  to  mention  the  very  rich  col- 
lection of  fossil  fishes  in  the  Museum  of  Mr. 
Mantell,  at  Brighton,  where,  I  think,  you 
could  take  the  weekly  steam-packet  for  Rot- 
terdam as  easily  as  in  London,  and  thus  ar- 
rive in  Neuchatel  from  London  in  a  very  few 
days.  .  .  . 


234  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

AGASSIZ   TO   PROFESSOR   BUCKLAND. 

...  I  thank  you  most  warmly  for  the  very 
important  information  you  have  so  kindly 
given  me  respecting  the  rich  collections  of 
England;  I  will,  if  possible,  make  arrange- 
ments to  visit  them  this  year,  and  in  that  case 
I  will  beg  you  to  let  me  have  a  few  letters  of 
recommendation  to  facilitate  my  examination 
of  them  in  detail.  Not  that  I  question  for  a 
moment  the  liberality  of  the  English  natural- 
ists. All  the  continental  savants  who  have  vis- 
ited your  museums  have  praised  the  kindness 
shown  in  intrusting  to  them  the  rarest  objects, 
and  I  well  know  that  the  English  rival  other 
nations  in  this  respect,  and  even  leave  them  far 
behind.  But  one  must  have  merited  such 
favors  by  scientific  labors ;  to  a  beginner  they 
are  always  a  free  gift,  wholly  undeserved.  .  .  . 

A  few  months  later  Agassiz  received  a  very 
gratifying  and  substantial  mark  of  the  inter- 
est felt  by  English  naturalists  in  his  work. 

CHARLES   LYELL    TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

SOMERSET  HOUSE,  LONDON,  February  4, 1834. 
...  It  is  with  the  greatest  pleasure  that 
I  announce  to  you  good  news.     The  Geolog- 


WOLL ASTON  PRIZE.  235 

ical  Society  of  London  desires  me  to  inform 
you  that  it  has  this  year  conferred  upon  you 
the  prize  bequeathed  by  Dr.  Wollaston.  He 
has  given  us  the  sum  of  one  thousand  pounds 
sterling,  begging  us  to  expend  the  interest,  or 
about  seven  hundred  and  fifty  francs  every 
year,  for  the  encouragement  of  the  science  of 
geology.  Your  work  on  fishes  has  been  con- 
sidered by  the  Council  and  the  officers  of  the 
Geological  Society  worthy  of  this  prize,  Dr. 
Wollaston  having  said  that  it  could  be  given 
for  unfinished  works.  The  sum  of  thirty 
guineas,  or  £31 10s.  sterling,  has  been  placed 
in  my  hands,  but  I  would  not  send  you  the 
money  before  knowing  exactly  where  you  were 
and  learning  from  you  where  you  wish  it  to 
be  paid.  You  will  probably  like  an  order  on 
some  Swiss  banker. 

I  cannot  yet  give  you  the  extract  from  the 
address  of  the  President  in  which  your  work 
is  mentioned,  but  I  shall  have  it  soon.  In  the 
mean  time  I  am  desired  to  tell  you  that  the 
Society  declines  to  receive  your  magnificent 
work  as  a  gift,  but  wishes  to  subscribe  for  it, 
and  has  already  ordered  a  copy  from  the  pub- 
lishers. 


236  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

AGASSIZ   TO   LYELL. 

NEUCHATEL,  March  25, 1834. 
.  .  .  You  cannot  imagine  the  joy  your  let- 
ter has  given  me.  The  prize  awarded  to  me 
is  at  once  so  unexpected  an  honor  and  so  wel- 
come an  aid  that  I  could  hardly  believe  my 
eyes  when,  with  tears  of  relief  and  gratitude, 
I  read  your  letter.  In  the  presence  of  a  sa- 
vant, I  need  not  be  ashamed  of  my  penury, 
since  I  have  spent  the  little  I  had,  wholly  in 
scientific  researches.  I  do  not,  therefore,  hes- 
itate to  confess  to  you  that  at  no  time  could 
your  gift  have  given  me  greater  pleasure. 
Generous  friends  have  helped  me  to  bring  out 
the  first  number  of  my  "  Fossil  Fishes ;  "  the 
plates  of  the  second  are  finished,  but  I  was 
greatly  embarrassed  to  know  how  to  print  a 
sufficient  number  of  copies  before  the  returns 
from  the  first  should  be  paid  in.  The  text  is 
ready  also,  so  that  now,  in  a  fortnight,  I  can 
begin  the  distribution,  and,  the  rotation  once 
established,  I  hope  that  preceding  numbers 
will  always  enable  me  to  publish  the  next  in 
succession  without  interruption.  I  even  count 
upon  this  resource  as  affording  me  the  means 
of  making  a  journey  to  England  before  long. 
If  no  obstacle  arises  I  hope  to  accomplish  this 


LETTER    TO  LYELL.  237 

during  the  coming  summer,  and  to  be  pres- 
ent at  the  next  meeting  of  the  English  natu- 
ralists. 

I  do  not  live  the  less  happily  on  account  of 
my  anxieties,  but  I  am  sometimes  obliged  to 
work  more  than  I  well  can,  or  ought  in  reason 
to  do.  ...  The  second  number  of  my  "  Fos- 
sil Fishes"  contains  the  beginning  of  the 
anatomy  of  the  fishes,  but  only  such  portions 
as  are  to  be  found  in  the  fossil  state.  I  have 
begun  with  the  scales ;  later,  I  treat  of  the 
bones  and  the  teeth.  Then  comes  the  con- 
tinuation of  the  description  of  the  Ganoids 
and  the  Scomberoids,  and  an  additional  sheet 
contains  a  sketch  of  my  ichthyological  clas- 
sification. The  plates  are  even  more  success- 
ful than  those  of  the  first  number.  If  all 
goes  well  the  third  number  will  appear  next 
July.  I  long  to  visit  your  rich  collections ;  I 
hope  that  whenever  it  becomes  possible  for 
me  to  do  so,  I  shall  have  the  good  fortune  to 
find  you  in  London.  .  .  . 

I  have  thought  a  letter  addressed  to  the 
President  of  the  Society  in  particular,  and 
to  the  members  in  general,  would  be  fitting. 
Will  you  have  the  kindness  to  deliver  it  for 
me  to  Mr.  Murchison  ? 


238  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

The  first  number  of  the  "  Fossil  Fishes  "  had 
already  appeared,  and  had  been  greeted  with 
enthusiasm  by  scientific  men.  Elie  de  Beau- 
mont writes  Agassiz  in  June,  1834 :  "  I  have 
read  with  great  pleasure  your  first  number ;  it 
promises  us  a  work  as  important  for  science 
as  it  is  remarkable  in  execution.  Do  not  let 
yourself  be  discouraged  by  obstacles  of  any 
kind ;  they  will  give  way  before  the  concert 
of  approbation  which  so  excellent  a  work  will 
awaken.  I  shall  always  be  glad  to  aid  in  over- 
coming any  one  of  them." 

Perhaps  it  is  as  well  to  give  here  a  slight 
sketch  of  this  work,  the  execution  of  which 
was  carried  on  during  the  next  ten  years 
(1833-1843).  The  inscription  tells,  in  few 
words,  the  author's  reverence  for  Humboldt 
and  his  personal  gratitude  to  him.  "  These 
pages  owe  to  you  their  existence ;  accept  their 
dedication."  The  title  gives  in  a  broad  out- 
line the  comprehensive  purpose  of  the  work: 

"  Researches  on  the  Fossil  Fishes  :  compris- 
ing an  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  these  Ani- 
mals; the  Comparative  Anatomy  of  Organic 
Systems  which  may  contribute  to  facilitate  the 
Determination  of  Fossil  Species ;  a  New  Classi- 
fication of  Fishes  expressing  their  Relations  to 
the  Series  of  Formations ;  the  Explanation  of 


REVIEW  OF  FOSSIL  FISHES.  239 

the  Laws  of  their  Succession  and  Develop- 
ment during  all  the  Changes  of  the  Terres- 
trial Globe,  accompanied  by  General  Geolog- 
ical Considerations ;  finally,  the  Description 
of  about  a  thousand  Species  which  no  longer 
exist,  and  whose  Characters  have  been  restored 
from  Remains  contained  in  the  Strata  of  the 
Earth." 

The  most  novel  results  comprised  in  this 
work  were :  first,  the  remodeling  of  the  classi- 
fication of  the  whole  type  of  fishes,  fossil  and 
living,  and  especially  the  separation  of  the 
Ganoids  from  all  other  fishes,  under  the  rank 
of  a  distinct  order;  second,  the  recognition 
of  those  combinations  of  reptilian  and  bird- 
like  characters  in  the  earlier  geological  fishes, 
which  led  the  author  to  call  them  prophetic 
types ;  and  third,  his  discovery  of  an  anal- 
ogy between  the  embryological  phases  of  the 
higher  present  fishes  and  the  gradual  intro- 
duction of  the  whole  type  on  earth,  the  series 
in  growth  and  the  series  in  time  revealing  a 
certain  mutual  correspondence.  As  these  com- 
prehensive laws  have  thrown  light  upon  other 
types  of  the  animal  kingdom  beside  that  of 
fishes,  their  discovery  may  be  said  to  have 
advanced  general  zoology  as  well  as  ichthy- 
ology. 


240  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

The  Introduction  presents,  as  it  were,  the 
prelude  to  this  vast  chapter  of  natural  history 
in  the  simultaneous  appearance  of  the  four 
great  types  of  the  animal  kingdom  :  Radiates, 
Mollusks,  Articulates,  and  Vertebrates.  Then 
comes  the  orderly  development  of  the  class  by 
which  the  vertebrate  plan  was  first  expressed, 
namely,  the  fishes.  Underlying  all  its  divis- 
ions and  subdivisions,  is  the  average  expression 
of  the  type  in  the  past  and  present ;  the  Pla- 
coids  and  Ganoids,  with  their  combination  of 
reptilian  and  fishlike  features,  characterizing 
the  earlier  geological  epochs,  while  in  the  later 
the  simple  bony  fishes,  the  Cycloids  and  Cte- 
noids,  take  the  ascendency.  Here,  for  the  first 
time,  Agassiz  presents  his  "  synthetic  or  pro- 
phetic types,"  namely,  early  types  embracing, 
as  it  were,  in  one  large  outline,  features  after- 
ward individualized  in  special  groups,  and 
never  again  reunited.  No  less  striking  than 
these  general  views  of  structural  relations  are 
the  clearness  and  simplicity  with  which  the  dis- 
tribution of  the  whole  class  of  fishes  in  rela- 
tion to  the  geological  formations,  or,  in  other 
words,  to  the  physical  history  of  the  earth,  is 
shown.  In  reading  this  introductory  chapter, 
one  familiar  with  Agassiz  as  a  public  teacher 
will  almost  hear  his  voice  marshaling  the  long 


REVIEW  OF  FOSSIL  FISHES.         241 

procession  of  living  beings,  as  he  was  wont 
to  do,  in  their  gradual  introduction  upon  the 
earth.  Indeed,  his  whole  future  work  in  ich- 
thyology, and  one  might  almost  say  in  gen- 
eral zoology,  was  here  sketched. 

The  technicalities  of  this  work,  at  once 
so  comprehensive  in  its  combinations  and  so 
minute  in  its  details,  could  interest  only  the 
professional  reader,  but  its  generalizations 
may  well  have  a  certain  attraction  for  every 
thoughtful  mind.  It  treats  of  the  relations, 
anatomical,  zoological,  and  geological,  between 
the  whole  class  of  fishes,  fossil  and  living,  il- 
lustrated by  numerous  plates,  while  additional 
light  is  thrown  on  the  whole  by  the  revelations 
of  embryology. 

"  Notwithstanding  these  striking  differ- 
ences," says  the  author  in  the  opening  of  the 
fifth  chapter  on  the  relations  of  fishes  in  gen- 
eral, "  it  is  none  the  less  evident  to  the  atten- 
tive observer  that  one  single  idea  has  presided 
over  the  development  of  the  whole  class,  and 
that  all  the  deviations  lead  back  to  a  primary 
plan,  so  that  even  if  the  thread  seem  broken 
in  the  present  creation,  one  can  reunite  it  on 
reaching  the  domain  of  fossil  ichthyology." 

Having  shown  how  the  present  creation  has 

1  Vol.  i.  chapter  v.  pp.  92,  93. 
VOL.  I.  16    * 


242  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

given  him  the  key  to  past  creations,  how  the 
complete  skeleton  of  the  living  fishes  has  ex- 
plained the  scattered  fragments  of  the  ancient 
ones,  especially  those  of  which  the  soft  carti- 
laginous structure  was  liable  to  decay,  he  pre- 
sents two  modes  of  studying  the  type  as  a 
whole  ;  either  in  its  comparative  anatomy,  in- 
cluding in  the  comparison  the  whole  history 
of  the  type,  fossil  and  living,  or  in  its  com- 
parative embryology.  "  The  results,"  he  adds, 
"  of  these  two  methods  of  study  complete  and 
control  each  other."  In  all  his  subsequent 
researches  indeed,  the  history  of  the  individ- 
ual in  its  successive  phases  went  hand  in  hand 
with  the  history  of  the  type.  He  constantly 
tested  his  zoological  results  by  his  embryolog- 
ical  investigations. 

After  a  careful  description  of  the  dorsal 
chord  in  its  embryological  development,  he 
shows  that  a  certain  parallelism  exists  between 
the  comparative  degrees  of  development  of 
the  vertebral  column  in  the  different  groups 
of  fishes,  and  the  phases  of  its  embryonic  de- 
velopment in  the  higher  fishes.  Farther  on 
he  shows  a  like  coincidence  between  the  devel- 
opment of  the  system  of  fins  in  the  different 
groups  of  fishes,  and  the  gradual  growth  and 
differentiation  of  the  fins  in  the  embryo  of  the 


REVIEW  OF  FOSSIL   FISHES.          243 

higher  living  fishes.1  "There  is,  then,"  he 
concludes,  "  as  we  have  said  above,  a  certain 
analogy,  or  rather  a  certain  parallelism,  to  be 
established  between  the  embryological  devel- 
opment of  the  Cycloids  and  Ctenoids,  and  the 
genetic  or  paleontological  development  of  the 
whole  class.  Considered  from  this  point  of 
view,  no  one  will  dispute  that  the  form  of  the 
caudal  fin  is  of  high  importance  for  zoolog- 
ical and  paleontological  considerations,  since 
it  shows  that  the  same  thought,  the  same 
plan,  which  presides  to-day  over  the  forma- 
tion of  the  embryo,  is  also  manifested  in  the 
successive  development  of  the  numerous  crea- 
tion which  have  formerly  peopled  the  earth." 
Agassiz  says  himself  in  his  Preface  :  "I  have 
succeeded  in  expressing  the  laws  of  succes- 
sion and  of  the  organic  development  of  fishes 
during  all  geological  epochs ;  and  science  may 
henceforth,  in  seeing  the  changes  of  this  class 
from  formation  to  formation,  follow  the  pro- 
gress of  organization  in  one  great  division  of 
the  animal  kingdom,  through  a  complete  se- 
ries of  the  ages  of  the  earth."  This  is  not 
inconsistent  with  his  position  as  the  leading 
opponent  of  the  development  or  Darwinian 

1  Recherches  sur  les  Poissons  Fossiles,  vol.  i.  chapter  v.  p. 
102. 


244  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

theories.  To  him,  development  meant  devel- 
opment of  plan  as  expressed  in  structure,  not 
the  change  of  one  structure  into  another.  To 
his  apprehension  the  change  was  based  upon 
intellectual,  not  upon  material  causes.  He 
sums  up  his  own  conviction  with  reference  to 
this  question  as  follows  : l  "  Such  facts  pro- 
claim aloud  principles  not  yet  discussed  in 
science,  but  which  paleontological  researches 
place  before  the  eyes  of  the  observer  with  an 
ever-increasing  persistency.  I  speak  of  the 
relations  of  the  creation  with  the  creator. 
Phenomena  closely  allied  in  the  order  of  their 
succession,  and  yet  without  sufficient  cause  in 
themselves  for  their  appearance;  an  infinite 
diversity  of  species  without  any  common  ma- 
terial bond,  so  grouping  themselves  as  to  pre- 
sent the  most  admirable  progressive  develop- 
ment to  which  our  own  species  is  linked, — 
are  these  not  incontestable  proofs  of  the  ex- 
istence of  a  superior  intelligence  whose  power 
alone  could  have  established  such  an  order 
of  things  ?  .  .  . 

"  More  than  fifteen  hundred  species  of  fossil 
fishes,  which  I  have  learned  to  know,  tell  me 
that  species  do  not  pass  insensibly  one  into 

1  Recherches  sur  les  Poissons  Fossiles,  vol.  i.  chapter  vi.  pp. 
171,  172.     "  Essay  on  the  Classification  of  Fishes." 


REVIEW  OF  FOSSIL  FISHES.         245 

another,  but  that  they  appear  and  disappear 
unexpectedly,  without  direct  relations  with 
their  precursors ;  for  I  think  no  one  will  seri- 
ously pretend  that  the  numerous  types  of  Cy- 
cloids and  Ctenoids,  almost  all  of  which  are 
contemporaneous  with  one  another,  have  de- 
scended from  the  Placoids  and  Ganoids.  As 
well  might  one  affirm  that  the  Mammalia,  and 
man  with  them,  have  descended  directly  from 
fishes.  All  these  species  have  a  fixed  epoch  of 
appearance  and  disappearance ;  their  existence 
is  even  limited  to  an  appointed  time.  And  yet 
they  present,  as  a  whole,  numerous  affinities 
more  or  less  close,  a  definite  coordination  in  a 
given  system  of  organization  which  has  inti- 
mate relations  with  the  mode  of  existence  of 
each  type,  and  even  of  each  species.  An  in- 
visible thread  unwinds  itself  throughout  all 
time,  across  this  immense  diversity,  and  pre- 
sents to  us  as  a  definite  result,  a  continual 
progress  in  the  development  of  which  man  is 
the  term,  of  which  the  four  classes  of  verte- 
brates are  intermediate  forms,  and  the  totality 
of  invertebrate  animals  the  constant  accessory 
accompaniment . ' ' 

The  difficulty  of  carrying  out  comparisons 
so  rigorous  and  extensive  as  were  needed  in 
order  to  reconstruct  the  organic  relations  be- 


246  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

tween  the  fossil  fishes  of  all  geological  for- 
mations and  those  of  the  present  world,  is 
best  told  by  the  author.1  "  Possessing  no  fos- 
sil fishes  myself,  and  renouncing  forever  the 
acquisition  of  collections  so  precious,  I  have 
been  forced  to  seek  the  materials  for  my  work 
in  all  the  collections  of  Europe  containing 
such  remains;  I  have,  therefore,  made  fre- 
quent journeys  in  Germany,  in  France,  and  in 
England,  in  order  to  examine,  describe,  and 
illustrate  the  objects  of  my  researches.  But 
notwithstanding  the  cordiality  with  which  even 
the  most  precious  specimens  have  been  placed 
at  my  disposition,  a  serious  inconvenience  has 
resulted  from  this  mode  of  working,  namely, 
that  I  have  rarely  been  able  to  compare  di- 
rectly the  various  specimens  of  the  same  spe- 
cies from  different  collections,  and  that  I  have 
often  been  obliged  to  make  my  identification 
from  memory,  or  from  simple  notes,  or,  in  the 
more  fortunate  cases,  from  my  drawings  only. 
It  is  impossible  to  imagine  the  fatigue,  the  ex- 
haustion of  all  the  faculties,  involved  in  such 
a  method.  The  hurry  of  traveling,  joined  to 
the  lack  of  the  most  ordinary  facilities  for 
observation,  has  not  rendered  my  task  more 

1  Recherches  sur  les  Poissons  Fossiles,  vol.  i.   Addition  a  la 
Preface. 


INSUFFICIENT  MATERIAL.  247 

easy.  I  therefore  claim  indulgence  for  such 
of  my  identifications  as  a  later  examination, 
made  at  leisure,  may  modify,  and  for  descrip- 
tions which  sometimes  bear  the  stamp  of  the 
precipitation  with  which  they  have  been  pre- 
pared." 

It  was,  perhaps,  this  experience  of  Agassiz's 
earlier  life  which  made  him  so  anxious  to  es- 
tablish a  museum  of  comparative  zoology  in 
this  country,  —  a  museum  so  abundant  and 
comprehensive  in  material,  that  the  student 
should  not  only  find  all  classes  of  the  animal 
kingdom  represented  within  its  walls,  but  pre- 
served also  in  such  numbers  as  to  allow  the 
sacrifice  of  many  specimens  for  purposes  of 
comparison  and  study.  He  was  resolved  that 
no  student  should  stand  there  baffled  at  the 
door  of  knowledge,  as  he  had  often  done  him- 
self, when  shown  the  one  precious  specimen, 
which  could  not  be  removed,  or  even  examined 
on  the  spot,  because  unique. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

1834-1837:  ^T.  27-30. 

First  Visit  to  England.  —  Reception  by  Scientific  Men. — 
Work  on  Fossil  Fishes  there.  —  Liberality  of  English 
Naturalists.  —  First  Relations  with  American  Science.  — 
Farther  Correspondence  with  Humboldt.  —  Second  Visit 
to  England.  —  Continuation  of  "  Fossil  Fishes."  —  Other 
Scientific  Publications.  —  Attention  drawn  to  Glacial  Phe- 
nomena. —  Summer  at  Bex  with  Charpentier.  —  Sale  of 
Original  Drawings  for  "  Fossil  Fishes."  —  Meeting  of  Hel- 
vetic Society.  —  Address  on  Ice-Period.  —  Letters  from 
Humboldt  and  Von  Buch. 

IN  August,  1834,  according  to  his  cherished 
hope,  Agassiz  went  to  England,  and  was  re- 
ceived by  the  scientific  men  with  a  cordial 
sympathy  which  left  not  a  day  or  an  hour  of 
his  short  sojourn  there  unoccupied.  The  fol- 
lowing letter  from  Buckland  is  one  of  many 
proffering  hospitality  and  friendly  advice  on 
his  arrival. 

DR.    BUCKLAND  TO    LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

OXFORD,  August  26,  1834. 

...  I  am  rejoiced  to  hear  of  your  safe  ar- 
rival in  London,  and  write  to  say  that  I  am 


FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND.  249 

in  Oxford,  and  that  I  shall  be  most  happy  to 
receive  you  and  give  you  a  bed  in  my  house 
if  you  can  come  here  immediately.  I  expect 
M.  Arago  and  Mr.  Pentland  from  Paris  to- 
morrow (Wednesday)  afternoon.  I  shall  be 
most  happy  to  show  you  our  Oxford  Museum 
on  Thursday  or  Friday,  and  to  proceed  with 
you  toward  Edinburgh.  Sir  Philip  Egerton 
has  a  fine  collection  of  fossil  fishes  near  Ches- 
ter, which  you  should  visit  on  your  road.  I 
have  partly  engaged  myself  to  be  with  him  on 
Monday,  September  1st,  but  I  think  it  would 
be  desirable  for  you  to  go  to  him  Saturday, 
that  you  may  have  time  to  take  drawings  of 
his  fossil  fishes. 

I  cannot  tell  certainly  what  day  I  shall 
leave  Oxford  until  I  see  M.  Arago,  whom  I 
hope  you  will  meet  at  my  house,  on  your 
arrival  in  Oxford.  I  shall  hope  to  see  you 
Wednesday  evening  or  Thursday  morning. 
Pray  come  to  my  house  in  Christ  Church,  with 
your  baggage,  the  moment  you  reach  Ox- 
ford. .  .  . 

Agassiz  always  looked  back  with  delight  on 
this  first  visit  to  Great  Britain.  It  was  the 
beginning  of  his  life -long  friendship  with 
Buckland,  Sedgwick,  Murchison,  Lyell,  and 


250  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

others  of  like  pursuits  and  interests.  Made 
welcome  in  many  homes,  he  could  scarcely 
respond  to  all  the  numerous  invitations,  social 
and  scientific,  which  followed  the  Edinburgh 
meeting. 

Guided  by  Dr.  Buckland,  to  whom  not  only 
every  public  and  private  collection,  but  every 
rare  specimen  in  the  United  Kingdom,  seems 
to  have  been  known,  he  wandered  from  treas- 
ure to  treasure.  Every  day  brought  its  reve- 
lation, until,  under  the  accumulation  of  new 
facts,  he  almost  felt  himself  forced  to  begin 
afresh  the  work  he  had  believed  well  ad- 
vanced. He  might  have  been  discouraged 
by  a  wealth  of  resources  which  seemed  to 
open  countless  paths,  leading  he  knew  not 
whither,  but  for  the  generosity  of  the  Eng- 
lish naturalists  who  allowed  him  to  cull,  out 
of  sixty  or  more  collections,  two  thousand  spe- 
cimens of  fossil  fishes,  and  to  send  them  to 
London,  where,  by  the  kindness  of  the  Geo- 
logical Society,  he  was  permitted  to  deposit 
them  in  a  room  in  Somerset  House.  The 
mass  of  materials  once  sifted  and  arranged, 
the  work  of  comparison  and  identification  be- 
came comparatively  easy.  He  sent  at  once 
for  his  faithful  artist,  Mr.  Dinkel,  who  began, 
without  delay,  to  copy  all  such  specimens  as 


ENGLISH  FRIENDSHIPS.  251 

threw  new  light  on  the  history  of  fossil  fishes, 
a  work  which  detained  him  in  England  for 
several  years. 

Agassiz  made  at  this  time  two  friends, 
whose  sympathy  and  cooperation  in  his  scien- 
tific work  were  invaluable  to  him  for  the  rest 
of  his  life.  Sir  Philip  Egerton  and  Lord  Cole 
(Earl  of  Enniskillen)  owned  two  of  the  most 
valuable  collections  of  fossil  fishes  in  Great 
Britain.1  To  aid  him  in  his  researches,  their 
most  precious  specimens  were  placed  at  Agas- 
siz's  disposition ;  his  artist  was  allowed  to 
work  for  months  on  their  collections,  and 
even  after  Agassiz  came  to  America,  they 
never  failed  to  share  with  him,  as  far  as  possi- 
ble, the  advantages  arising  from  the  increase 
of  their  museums.  From  this  time  his  corre- 
spondence with  them,  and  especially  with  Sir 
Philip  Egerton,  is  closely  connected  with  the 
ever-growing  interest  as  well  as  with  the  diffi- 
culties of  his  scientific  career.  Reluctantly, 
and  with  many  a  backward  look,  he  left  Eng- 
land in  October,  and  returned  to  his  lectures 
in  Neuchatel,  taking  with  him  such  specimens 
as  were  indispensable  to  the  progress  of  his 
work.  Every  hour  of  the  following  winter 
which  could  be  spared  from  his  lectures  was 
devoted  to  his  fossil  fishes. 

1  Now  the  property  of  the  British  Museum. 


252  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

A  letter  of  this  date  from  Professor  Silliman, 
of  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  marks  the  begin- 
ning of  his  relations  with  his  future  New  Eng- 
land home,  and  announces  his  first  New  Eng- 
land subscribers. 

YALE  COLLEGE  NEW  HAVEN, 
UNITED  STATES  OF  N.  AMERICA,  April  22,  1835.  > 

.  .  .  From  Boston,  March  6th,  I  had  the 
honor  to  thank  you  for  your  letter  of  January 
5th,  and  for  your  splendid  present  of  your 
great  work  on  fossil  fishes  —  livraison  1-22 
—  received,  with  the  plates.  I  also  gave  a 
notice  of  the  work  in  the  April  number  of 
the  Journal l  (this  present  month),  and  repub- 
lished  Mr.  Bakewell's  account  of  your  visit 
to  Mr.  Mantell's  museum. 

In  Boston  I  made  some  little  efforts  in  be- 
half of  your  work,  and  have  the  pleasure  of 
naming  as  follows  :  — 

Harvard  University,  Cambridge  (Cambridge 
is  only  four  miles  from  Boston),  by  Hon. 
Josiah  Quincy,  President. 

Boston  Athena3um,  by  its  Librarian. 

Benjamin  Green,  Esq.,  President  of  the  Bos- 
ton Natural  History  Society. 

I  shall  make  application  to  some  other  insti- 

1  The  American  Journal  of  Science  and  Arts. 


FIRST  RELATIONS  WITH  AMERICA.    253 

tutions  or  individuals,  but  do  not  venture  to 
promise  anything  more  than  my  best  exer- 
tions. .  .  . 

Agassiz  little  dreamed,  as  he  read  this  let- 
ter, how  familiar  these  far-off  localities  would 
become  to  him,  or  how  often,  in  after  years, 
he  would  traverse  by  day  and  by  night  the 
four  miles  which  lay  between  Boston  and  his 
home  in  Cambridge. 

Agassiz  still  sought  and  received,  as  we  see 
by  the  following  letter,  Humboldt's  sympathy 
in  every  step  of  his  work. 

HUMBOLDT   TO   LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN,  May,  1835. 

I  am  to  blame  for  my  neglect  of  you,  my 
dear  friend,  but  when  you  consider  the  grief 
which  depresses  me,1  and  renders  me  unfit  to 
keep  up  my  scientific  connections,  you  will 
not  be  so  unkind  as  to  bear  me  any  ill-will 
for  my  long  silence.  You  are  too  well  aware 
of  my  high  esteem  for  your  talents  and  your 
character  —  you  know  too  well  the  affection- 
ate friendship  I  bear  you  —  to  fear  for  a  mo- 
ment that  you  could  be  forgotten. 

I  have  seen  the  being  I  loved  most,  and 

1  Owing  to  the  death  of  his  brother,  William  von  Humboldt. 


254  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

who  alone  gave  me  some  interest  in  this  arid 
land,  slowly  decline.  For  four  long  years  my 
brother  had  suffered  from  a  weakness  of  all 
the  muscles,  which  made  me  always  fear  that 
the  seat  of  the  trouble  was  the  medulla  oblon- 
gata.  Yet  his  step  was  firm  ;  his  head  was  en- 
tirely clear.  The  higher  intellectual  faculties 
retained  all  their  energy.  He  was  engaged 
from  twelve  to  thirteen  hours  a  day  on  his 
works,  reading  or  rather  dictating,  for  a  nerv- 
ous trembling  of  the  hand  prevented  him  from 
using  a  pen.  Surrounded  by  a  numerous  fam- 
ily ;  living  on  a  spot  created,  so  to  speak,  by 
himself,  and  in  a  house  which  he  had  adorned 
with  antique  statues ;  withdrawn  also  from 
affairs,  he  was  still  attached  to  life.  The  ill- 
ness which  carried  him  off  in  ten  days  —  an 
inflammation  of  the  chest  —  was  but  a  secon- 
dary symptom  of  his  disease.  He  died  with- 
out pain,  with  a  strength  of  character  and  a 
serenity  of  mind  worthy  of  the  greatest  ad- 
miration. It  is  cruel  to  see  so  nobje  an  intel- 
ligence struggle  during  ten  long  days  against 
physical  destruction.  We  are  told  that  in 
great  grief  we  should  turn  with  redoubled 
energy  to  the  study  of  nature.  The  advice  is 
easy  to  give  ;  but  for  a  long  time  even  the 
wish  for  distraction  is  wanting. 


LETTER  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  255 

My  brother  leaves  two  works  which  we  in- 
tend to  publish  :  one  upon  the  languages  and 
ancient  Indian  civilization  of  the  Asiatic  archi- 
pelago, and  the  other  upon  the  structure  of 
languages  in  general,  and  the  influence  of  that 
structure  upon  the  intellectual  development  of 
nations.  This  last  work  has  great  beauty  of 
style.  We  shall  soon  begin  the  publication 
of  it.  My  brother's  extensive  correspondence 
with  all  those  countries  over  which  his  philo- 
logical studies  extended  brings  upon  me  just 
at  present,  such  a  multiplicity  of  occupations 
and  duties  that  I  can  only  write  you  these 
few  lines,  my  dear  friend,  as  a  pledge  of  my 
constant  affection,  and,  I  may  also  add,  my 
admiration  of  your  eminent  works.  It  is  a 
pleasure  to  watch  the  growing  renown  of 
those  who  are  dear  to  us;  and  who  should 
merit  success  more  than  you,  whose  elevation 
of  character  is  proof  against  the  temptations 
of  literary  self-love?  I  thank  you  for  the 
little  you  have  told  me  of  your  home  life.  It 
is  not  enough  to  be  praised  and  recognized  as 
a  great  and  profound  naturalist ;  to  this  one 
must  add  domestic  happiness  as  well.  .  .  . 

I  am  about  finishing  my  long  and  weari- 
some work  of  (illegible) ;  a  critical  examination 
into  the  geography  of  the  Middle  Ages,  of 


256  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

which  fifty  sheets  are  already  printed.  I  will 
send  you  the  volumes  as  soon  as  they  appear, 
in  octavo.  I  devoured  your  fourth  number ; 
the  plates  are  almost  finer  than  the  previous 
ones ;  and  the  text,  though  I  have  only  looked 
it  through  hastily,  interested  me  deeply,  espe- 
cially the  analytical  catalogue  of  Bolca,  and 
the  more  general  and  very  philosophical  views 
of  fishes  in  general,  pp.  57-64.  The  latter  is 
also  remarkable  in  point  of  style.  .  .  . 

M.  von  Buch,  who  has  just  left  me,  sends 
you  a  warm  greeting.  None  the  less  does  he 
consider  the  method  of  issuing  your  text  in 
fragments  from  different  volumes,  altogether 
diabolical.  I  also  complain  a  little,  though  in 
all  humility ;  but  I  suppose  it  to  be  connected 
with  the  difficulty  of  concluding  any  one  fam- 
ily, when  new  materials  are  daily  accumulat- 
ing on  your  hands.  Continue  then  as  before. 
In  my  judgment,  M.  Agassiz  never  does 
wrong.  .  .  . 

The  above  letter,  though  written  in  May, 
did  not  reach  Agassiz  until  the  end  of  July, 
when  he  was  again  on  his  way  to  England, 
where  his  answer  is  dated. 


LETTER   TO  HUMBOLDT.  257 

AGASSIZ   TO   HUMBOLDT. 

(LONDON),  October  — ,  1835. 

...  I  cannot  express  to  you  my  pleasure  in 
reading  your  letter  of  May  10th  (which  was, 
unhappily,  only  delivered  to  me  on  my  pas- 
sage through  Carlsruhe,  at  the  end  of  July). 
.  .  .  To  know  that  I  have  occupied  your 
thoughts  a  moment,  especially  in  days  of  trial 
and  sorrow  such  as  you  have  had  to  bear, 
raises  me  in  my  own  eyes,  and  redoubles  my 
hope  for  the  future.  And  just  now  such  en- 
couragement is  particularly  cheering  under 
the  difficulties  which  I  meet  in  completing 
my  task  in  England.  I  have  now  been  here 
nearly  two  months,  and  I  hope  before  leaving 
to  finish  the  description  of  all  that  I  brought 
together  at  the  Geological  Society  last  year. 
Knowing  that  you  are  in  Paris,  however,  I 
cannot  resist  the  temptation  of  going  to  see 
you ;  indeed,  should  your  stay  be  prolonged 
for  some  weeks,  it  would  be  my  most  direct 
path  for  home.  I  should  like  to  tell  you  a 
little  of  what  I  have  done,  and  how  the  world 
has  gone  with  me  since  we  last  met.  ...  I 
have  certainly  committed  an  imprudence  in 
throwing  myself  into  an  enterprise  so  vast 
in  proportion  to  my  means  as  my  "Fossil 

VOL.   I.  17 


258  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Fishes."  But,  having  begun  it,  I  have  no  al- 
ternative ;  my  only  safety  is  in  success.  I 
have  a  firm  conviction  that  I  shall  bring  my 
work  to  a  happy  issue,  though  often  in  the 
evening  I  hardly  know  how  the  mill  is  to  be 
turned  to-morrow.  .  .  . 

By  a  great  good  fortune  for  me,  the  Brit- 
ish Association,  at  the  suggestion  of  Buck- 
land,  Sedgwick,  and  Murchison,  has  renewed, 
for  the  present  year,  its  vote  of  one  hundred 
guineas  toward  the  facilitating  of  researches 
upon  the  fossil  fishes  of  England,  and  I  hope 
that  a  considerable  part  of  this  sum  may  be 
awarded  to  me,  in  which  case  I  may  be  able  to 
complete  the  greater  number  of  the  drawings 
I  need.  If  I  had  obtained  in  France  only 
half  the  subscriptions  I  have  had  in  England, 
I  should  be  afloat ;  but  thus  far  M.  Bailliere 
has  only  disposed  of  some  fifteen  copies.  .  .  . 
My  work  advances  fairly  ;  I  shall  soon  have 
described  all  the  species  I  know,  numbering 
now  about  nine  hundred.  I  "need  some  weeks 
in  Paris  for  the  comparison  of  several  tertiary 
species  with  living  ones  in  order  to  satisfy  my- 
self of  their  specific  identity,  and  then  my  task 
will  be  accomplished.  Next  comes  the  put- 
ting in  order  of  all  my  notes.  My  long  va- 
cations will  give  me  time  to  do  this  with  the 
greatest  care.  .  .  . 


OTHER  PUBLICATIONS.  259 

His  second  visit  to  England,  during  which 
the  above  letter  was  written,  was  chiefly  spent 
in  reviewing  the  work  of  his  artist,  whom  he 
now  reinforced  with  a  second  draughtsman, 
M.  Weber,  the  same  who  had  formerly  worked 

with  him  in  Munich.     He  also  attended  the 

• 

meeting  of  the  British  Association  in  Dublin, 
stayed  a  few  days  at  Oulton  Park  for  another 
look  at  the  collections  of  Sir  Philip  Egerton, 
made  a  second  grand  tour  among  the  other 
fossil  fishes  of  England  and  Ireland,  and  re- 
turned to  Neuchatel,  leaving  his  two  artists 
in  London  with  their  hands  more  than  full. 

While  Agassiz  thus  pursued  his  work  on 
fossil  fishes  with  ardor  and  an  almost  perilous 
audacity,  in  view  of  his  small  means,  he  found 
also  time  for  various  other  investigations.  Dur- 
ing the  year  1836,  though  pushing  forward 
constantly  the  publication  of  the  "  Poissons 
Fossiles,"  his  "Prodromus  of  the  Class  of 
Echinodermata  "  appeared  in  the  Memoirs  of 
the  Natural  History  Society  of  Neuchatel,  as 
well  as  his  paper  on  the  fossil  Echini  belong- 
ing to  the  Neocomien  group  of  the  Neuchatel 
Jura,  accompanied  by  figures.  Not  long  after, 
he  published  in  the  Memoirs  of  the  Helvetic 
Society  his  descriptions  of  fossil  Echini  pecul- 
iar to  Switzerland,  and  issued  also  the  first 


260  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

number  of  a  more  extensive  work,  "  Monogra- 
phic d'Echinodermes."  During  this  year  he 
received  a  new  evidence  of  the  sympathy  of 
the  English  naturalists,  in  the  Wollaston  medal 
awarded  to  him  by  the  London  Geological 
Society. 

The  summer  of  1836  was  an  eventful  one 
for  Agassiz,  —  the  opening,  indeed,  of  a  new 
and  brilliant  chapter  in  his  life.  The  at- 
tention of  the  ignorant  and  the  learned  had 
alike  been  called  to  the  singular  glacial  phe- 
nomena of  movement  and  transportation  in 
the  Alpine  valleys.  The  peasant  had  told  his 
strange  story  of  boulders  carried  on  the  back 
of  the  ice,  of  the  alternate  retreat  and  advance 
of  glaciers,  now  shrinking  to  narrower  limits, 
now  plunging  forward  into  adjoining  fields, 
by  some  unexplained  power  of  expansion  and 
contraction.  Scientific  men  were  awake  to 
the  interest  of  these  facts,  but  had  consid- 
ered them  only  as  local  phenomena.  Venetz 
and  Charpentier  were  the  first  to  detect  their 
wider  significance.  The  former  traced  the  an- 
cient limits  of  the  Alpine  glaciers  as  defined 
by  the  frame-work  of  debris  or  loose  material 
they  had  left  behind  them  ;  and  Charpentier 
went  farther,  and  affirmed  that  all  the  erratic 
boulders  scattered  over  the  plain  of  Switzer- 


GLACIAL  RESEARCHES.  261 

land  and  on  the  sides  of  the  Jura  had  been 
thus  distributed  by  ice  and  not  by  water,  as 
had  been  supposed. 

Agassiz  was  among  those  who  received  this 
hypothesis  as  improbable  and  untenable.  Still, 
he  was  anxious  to  see  the  facts  in  place,  and 
Charpentier  was  glad  to  be  his  guide.  He 
therefore  passed  his  vacation,  during  this  sum- 
mer of  1836,  at  the  pretty  town  of  Bex,  in  the 
valley  of  the  Rhone.  Here  he  spent  a  number 
of  weeks  in  explorations,  which  served  at  the 
same  time  as  a  relaxation  from  his  more  seden- 
tary work.  He  went  expecting  to  confirm  his 
own  doubts,  and  to  disabuse  his  friend  Char- 
pentier of  his  errors.  But  after  visiting  with 
him  the  glaciers  of  the  Diablerets,  those  of 
the  valley  of  Chamounix,  and  the  moraines  of 
the  great  valley  of  the  Rhone  and  its  princi- 
pal lateral  valleys,  he  came  away  satisfied  that 
a  too  narrow  interpretation  of  the  phenomena 
was  Charpentier's  only  mistake. 

During  this  otherwise  delightful  summer,  he 
was  not  without  renewed  anxiety  lest  he  should 
be  obliged  to  suspend  the  publication  of  the 
Fossil  Fishes  for  want  of  means  to  carry  it  on. 
On  this  account  he  writes  from  Bex  to  Sir 
Philip  Egerton  in  relation  to  the  sale  of  his 
original  drawings,  the  only  property  he  pos- 


262  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

sessed.  "  It  is  absolutely  impossible/'  he  says, 
"  for  me  to  issue  even  another  number  until 
this  sale  is  effected.  ...  I  shall  consider  my- 
self more  than  repaid  if  I  receive,  in  exchange 
for  the  whole  collection  of  drawings,  simply 
what  I  have  expended  upon  them,  provided 
I  may  keep  those  which  have  yet  to  be  litho- 
graphed until  that  be  done." 

Sir  Philip  made  every  effort  to  effect  a  sale 
to  the  British  Museum.  He  failed  at  the 
moment,  but  the  collection  was  finally  pur- 
chased and  presented  to  the  British  Museum 
by  a  generous  relative  of  his  own,  Lord  Fran- 
cis Egerton.  In  the  mean  time,  Sir  Philip  and 
Lord  Cole,  in  order  to  make  it  possible  for 
Agassiz  to  retain  the  services  of  Mr.  Dinkel, 
proposed  to  pay  his  expenses  while  he  was 
drawing  such  specimens  from  their  own  collec- 
tions as  were  needed  for  the  work.  These 
drawings  were,  of  course,  finally  to  remain 
their  own  property. 

During  his  sojourn  at  Bex,  Agassiz's  intel- 
lect and  imagination  had  been  deeply  stirred 
by  the  glacial  phenomena.  In  the  winter  of 
1837,  on  his  return  to  Neuchatel,  he  investi- 
gated anew  the  slopes  of  the  Jura,  and  found 
that  the  facts  there  told  the  same  story.  Al- 
though he  resumed  with  unabated  ardor  his 


ADDRESS   TO   THE  HELVETIC  SOCIETY.     263 

various  works  on  fishes,  radiates,  and  mol- 
lusks,  a  new  chapter  of  nature  was  all  the 
while  unfolding  itself  in  his  fertile  brain. 
When  the  Helvetic  Association  assembled  at 
Neuchatel  in  the  following  summer,  the  young 
president,  from  whom  the  members  had  ex- 
pected to  hear  new  tidings  of  fossil  fishes, 
startled  them  by  the  presentation  of  a  glacial 
theory,  in  which  the  local  erratic  phenomena 
of  the  Swiss  valleys  assumed  a  cosmic  sig- 
nificance. It  is  worthy  of  remark  here  that 
the  first  large  outlines  in  which  Agassiz,  when 
a  young  man,  planned  his  intellectual  work 
gave  the  key-note  to  all  that  followed.  As 
the  generalizations  on  which  all  his  future 
zoological  researches  were  based,  are  sketched 
in  the  Preface  to  his  "  Poissons  Fossiles,"  so 
his  opening  address  to  the  Helvetic  Society 
in  1837  unfolds  the  glacial  period  as  a  whole, 
much  as  he  saw  it  at  the  close  of  his  life,  af- 
ter he  had  studied  the  phenomena  on  three 
continents.  In  this  address  he  announced  his 
conviction  that  a  great  ice-period,  due  to  a  tem- 
porary oscillation  of  the  temperature  of  the 
globe,  had  covered  the  surface  of  the  earth 
with  a  sheet  of  ice,  extending  at  least  from 
the  north  pole  to  Central  Europe  and  Asia. 
"  Siberian  winter,"  he  says,  "  established  itself 


264  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

for  a  time  over  a  world  previously  covered 
with  a  rich  vegetation  and  peopled  with  large 
mammalia,  similar  to  those  now  inhabiting  the 
warm  regions  of  India  and  Africa.  Death  en- 
veloped all  nature  in  a  shroud,  and  the  cold, 
having  reached  its  highest  degree,  gave  to 
this  mass  of  ice,  at  the  maximum  of  tension, 
the  greatest  possible  hardness."  In  this  novel 
presentation  the  distribution  of  erratic  boul- 
ders, instead  of  being  classed  among  local 
phenomena,  was  considered  "  as  one  of  the  ac- 
cidents accompanying  the  vast  change  occa- 
sioned by  the  fall  of  the  temperature  of  our 
globe  before  the  commencement  of  our  epoch." 
This  was,  indeed,  throwing  the  gauntlet 
down  to  the  old  expounders  of  erratic  phe- 
nomena upon  the  principle  of  floods,  freshets, 
and  floating  ice.  Many  well-known  geologists 
were  present  at  the  meeting,  among  them  Leo- 
pold von  Buch,  who  could  hardly  contain  his 
indignation,  mingled  with  contempt,  for  what 
seemed  to  him  the  view  of  a  youthful  and  in- 
experienced observer.  One  would  have  liked 
to  hear  the  discussion  which  followed,  in  spe- 
cial section,  between  Von  Buch,  Charpentier, 
and  Agassiz.  Elie  de  Beaumont,  who  should 
have  made  the  fourth,  did  not  arrive  till  later. 
Difference  of  opinion,  however,  never  dis- 


OPPOSITION  TO  THE  GLACIAL  THEORY.    265 

turbed  the  cordial  relation  which  existed  be- 
tween Von  Buch  and  his  young  opponent.  In- 
deed, Agassiz's  reverence  and  admiration  for 
Von  Buch  was  then,  and  continued  through- 
out his  life,  deep  and  loyal. 

Not  alone  from  the  men  who  had  made 
these  subjects  their  special  study,  did  Agassiz 
meet  with  discouragements.  The  letters  of 
his  beloved  mentor,  Humboldt,  in  1837,  show 
how  much  he  regretted  that  any  part  of  his 
young  friend's  energy  should  be  diverted 
from  zoology,  to  a  field  of  investigation  which 
he  then  believed  to  be  one  of  theory  rather 
than  of  precise  demonstration.  He  was,  per- 
haps, partly  influenced  by  the  fact  that  he 
saw  through  the  prejudiced  eyes  of  his  friend 
Von  Buch.  "Over  your  and  Charpentier's 
moraines,"  he  says,  in  one  of  his  letters, 
"  Leopold  von  Buch  rages,  as  you  may  al- 
ready know,  considering  the  subject,  as  he 
does,  his  exclusive  property.  But  I  too, 
though  by  no  means  so  bitterly  opposed  to 
new  views,  and  ready  to  believe  that  the 
boulders  have  not  all  been  moved  by  the  same 
means,  am  yet  inclined  to  think  the  moraines 
due  to  more  local  causes." 

The  next  letter  shows  that  Humboldt  was 
seriously  anxious  lest  this  new  field  of  activ- 


266  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

ity,  with  its  fascinating  speculations,  should 
draw  Agassiz  away  from  his  ichthyological  re- 
searches. 

HTJMBOLDT   TO   AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN,  December  2,  1837. 

I  have  this  moment  received,  my  dear 
friend,  by  the  hand  of  M.  de  Werther,  the 
cabinet  minister,  your  eighth  and  ninth  num- 
bers, with  a  fine  pamphlet  of  text.  I  hasten 
to  express  my  warm  thanks,  and  I  congratu- 
late the  public  on  your  somewhat  tardy  res- 
olution to  give  a  larger  proportion  of  text. 
One  should  flatter  neither  the  king,  nor  the 
people,  nor  one's  dearest  friend.  I  maintain, 
therefore,  that  no  one  has  told  you  forcibly 
enough  how  the  very  persons  who  justly  ad- 
mire your  work,  constantly  complain  of  this 
fragmentary  style  of  publication,  which  is  the 
despair  of  those  who  have  not  the  leisure  to 
place  your  scattered  sheets  where  they  belong 
and  disentangle  the  skein.1 

I  think  you  would  do  well  to  publish  for 
a  while  more  text  than  plates.  You  could  do 

1  Owing  to  the  irregularity  with  which  he  received  and 
was  forced  to  work  up  his  material,  Agassiz  was  often  either 
in  advance  or  in  arrears  with  certain  parts  of  his  subject,  so 
that  his  plates  and  his  text  did  not  keep  pace  with  each  other, 
thus  causing  his  readers  much  annoyance. 


LETTER   FROM  HUMBOLDT.  267 

this  the  better  because  your  text  is  excellent, 
full  of  new  and  important  ideas,  expressed 
with  admirable  clearness.  The  charming  let- 
ter (again  without  a  date)  which  preceded 
your  package  impressed  me  painfully.  I  see 
you  are  ill  again  ;  you  complain  of  congestion 
of  the  head  and  eyes.  For  mercy's  sake  take 
care  of  your  health  which  is  so  dear  to  us. 
I  am  afraid  you  work  too  much,  and  (shall 
I  say  it  frankly?)  that  you  spread  your  in- 
tellect over  too  many  subjects  at  once.  I 
think  that  you  should  concentrate  your  moral 
and  also  your  pecuniary  strength  upon  this 
beautiful  work  on  fossil  fishes.  In  so  doing 
you  will  render  a  greater  service  to  positive 
geology,  than  by  these  general  considerations 
(a  little  icy  withal)  on  the  revolutions  of  the 
primitive  world  ;  considerations  which,  as  you 
well  know,  convince  only  those  who  give 
them  birth.  In  accepting  considerable  sums 
from  England,  you  have,  so  to  speak,  con- 
tracted obligations  to  be  met  only  by  complet- 
ing a  work  which  will  be  at  once  a  monument 
to  your  own  glory  and  a  landmark  in  the  his- 
tory of  science.  Admirable  and  exact  as  your 
researches  on  other  fossils  are,  your  contem- 
poraries claim  from  you  the  fishes  above  all. 
You  will  say  that  this  is  making  you  the  slave 


268  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

of  others;  perfectly  true,  but  such  is  the 
pleasing  position  of  affairs  here  below.  Have 
I  not  been  driven  for  thirty-three  years  to  busy 
myself  with  that  tiresome  America,  and  am  I 
not,  even  yet,  daily  insulted  because,  after 
publishing  thirty  -  two  volumes  of  the  great 
edition  in  folio  and  in  quarto,  and  twelve  hun- 
dred plates,  one  volume  of  the  historical  sec- 
tion is  wanting?  We  men  of  letters  are  the 
servants  of  an  arbitrary  master,  whom  we  have 
imprudently  chosen,  who  flatters  and  pets  us 
first,  and  then  tyrannizes  over  us  if  we  do 
not  work  to  his  liking.  You  see,  my  dear 
friend,  I  play  the  grumbling  old  man,  and,  at 
the  risk  of  deeply  displeasing  you,  place  my- 
self on  the  side  of  the  despotic  public.  .  .  . 

With  reference  to  the  general  or  periodical 
lowering  of  the  temperature  of  the  globe,  I 
have  never  thought  it  necessary,  on  account 
of  the  elephant  of  the  Lena,  to  admit  that 
sudden  frost  of  which  Cuvier  used  to  speak. 
What  I  have  seen  in  Siberia,  and  what  has 
been  observed  in  Captain  Beechey's  expedition 
on  the  northwest  coast  of  America,  simply 
proves  that  there  exists  a  layer  of  frozen  drift, 
in  the  fissures  of  which  (even  now)  the  muscu- 
lar flesh  of  any  animal  which  should  acciden- 
tally fall  into  them  would  be  preserved  intact. 


DISTRUST  OF  GLACIAL    THEORY.     269 

It  is  a  slight  local  phenomenon.  To  me,  the 
ensemble  of  geological  phenomena  seems  to 
prove,  not  the  prevalence  of  this  glacial  sur- 
face on  which  you  would  carry  along  your 
boulders,  but  a  very  high  temperature  spread- 
ing almost  to  the  poles,  a  temperature  favor- 
able to  organizations  resembling  those  now 
living  in  the  tropics.  Your  ice  frightens  me, 
and  gladly  as  I  would  welcome  you  here,  my 
dear  friend,  I  think,  perhaps,  for  the  sake  of 
your  health,  and  also  that  you  may  not  see 
this  country,  always  so  hideous,  under  a  sheet 
of  snow  and  ice  (in  February),  you  would  do 
better  to  come  two  months  later,  with  the 
first  verdure.  This  is  suggested  by  a  letter 

received    yesterday    by    M.    d'O ,    which 

alarmed  me  a  little,  because  the  state  of  your 
eyes  obliged  you  to  wrrite  by  another  hand. 
Pray  do  not  think  of  traveling  before  you  are 
quite  well.  I  close  this  letter,  feeling  sure  that 
it  does  not  contain  a  line  which  is  not  an  ex- 
pression of  friendship  and  of  the  high  esteem 
I  bear  you.  The  magnificence  of  your  last 
numbers,  eight  and  nine,  cannot  be  told.  How 
admirably  executed  are  your  Macropoma,  the 
Ophiopris  procerus,  Mantell's  great  beast,  the 
minute  details  of  the  Dercetis,  Psammodus, 
.  c  .  the  skeletons.  .  .  .  There  is  nothing 


270  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

like  it  in  all  that  we  possess  upon  vertebrates. 
I  have  also  begun  to  study  your  text,  so  rich 
in  well  arranged  facts ;  the  monograph  of  the 
Lepidostei,  the  passage  upon  the  bony  rays, 
and,  dear  Agassiz,  I  could  hardly  believe  my 
eyes,  sixty-five  continuous  pages  of  the  third 
volume,  without  interruption  !  You  will  spoil 
the  public.  But,  my  good  friend,  you  have 
already  information  upon  a  thousand  species ; 
"  claudite  jam  rivos  !  "  You  say  your  work 
can  go  on  if  you  have  two  hundred  subscrib- 
ers ;  but  if  you  continue  to  support  two  travel- 
ing draughtsmen,  I  predict,  as  a  practical  man, 
that  it  cannot  go  on.  You  cannot  even  pub- 
lish what  you  have  gathered  in  the  last  five 
years.  Consider  that  in  attempting  to  give  a 
review  of  all  the  fossil  fishes  which  now  exist 
in  collections,  you  pursue  a  phantom  which 
ever  flies  before  you.  Such  a  work  would 
not  be  finished  in  less  than  fifteen  years,  and 
besides,  this  now  is  an  uncertain  element. 
Cannot  you  conquer  yourself  so  far  as  to 
finish  what  you  have  in  your  possession  at 
present  ?  Recall  your  artists.  With  the  rep- 
utation you  enjoy  in  Europe,  whatever  might 
essentially  change  your  opinion  on  certain  or- 
ganisms would  willingly  be  sent  to  you.  If 
you  continue  to  keep  two  ambassadors  in  for- 


ADVICE  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  271 

eign  lands,  the  means  you  destine  for  the 
engraving  and  printing  will  soon  be  absorbed. 
You  will  struggle  with  domestic  difficulties, 
and  at  sixty  years  of  age  (tremble  at  the 
sight  of  this  number ! )  you  will  be  as  un- 
certain as  you  are  to-day,  whether  you  pos- 
sess, even  in  your  collection  of  drawings,  all 
that  is  to  be  found  among  amateurs.  How 
exhaust  an  ocean  in  which  the  species  are 
indefinitely  increasing  ?  Finish,  first,  what 
you  have  this  December,  1837,  and  then,  if 
the  subject  does  not  weary  you,  publish  the 
supplements  in  1847.  You  must  not  forget 
that  these  supplements  will  be  of  two  kinds : 
1st.  Ideas  which  modify  some  of  your  old 
views.  2d.  New  species.  Only  the  first  kind 
of  supplement  would  be  really  desirable.  Fur- 
thermore, you  must  regain  your  intellectual 
independence  and  not  let  yourself  be  scolded 
any  more  by  M.  de  Humboldt.  Little  will 
it  avail  you  should  I  vanish  from  the  scene 
of  this  world  with  your  fourteenth  number ! 
When  I  am  a  fossil  in  my  turn  I  shall  still  ap- 
pear to  you  as  a  ghost,  having  under  my  arm 
the  pages  you  have  failed  to  interpolate  and 
the  volume  of  that  eternal  America  which  I 
owe  to  the  public.  I  close  with  a  touch  of  fun, 
in  order  that  my  letter  may  seem  a  little  less 


272  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

like  preaching.  A  thousand  affectionate  re- 
membrances. No  more  ice,  not  much  of  echi- 
noderms,  plenty  of  fish,  recall  of  ambassadors 
in  partibus,  and  great  severity  toward  the 
book-sellers,  an  infernal  race,  two  or  three  of 
whom  have  been  killed  under  me. 

A.    DE    HUMBOLDT. 

I  sigh  to  think  of  the  trouble  my  horrible 
writing  will  give  you. 

A  letter  of  about  the  same  date  from  Von 
Buch  shows  that,  however  he  might  storm  at 
Agassiz's  heterodox  geology,  he  was  in  full 
sympathy  with  his  work  in  general. 

LEOPOLD   VON    BUCH   TO   LOULS   AGASSIZ. 

December  22,  1837. 

.  .  .  Pray  reinstate  me  in  the  good  graces 
of  my  unknown  benefactor  among  you.  By 
a  great  mistake  the  reports  of  the  Society  for- 
warded to  me  from  Neuchatel  have  been  sent 
back.  As  it  is  well  known  at  the  post-office 
that  I  do  not  keep  the  piles  of  educational 
journals  sent  to  me  from  France,  the  postage 
on  them  being  much  too  heavy  for  my  means, 
they  took  it  for  granted  that  this  journal,  the 
charges  on  which  amounted  to  several  crowns, 
was  of  the  number.  I  am  very  sorry.  I  do 


LETTER   FROM  VON  BUCH.  273 

not  even  know  the  contents  of  the  journal, 
but  I  suppose  it  contained  papers  of  yours, 
full  of  genius  and  ardor.  I  like  your  way  of 
looking  at  nature,  and  I  think  you  render 
great  service  to  science  by  your  observations. 
A  right  spirit  will  readily  lead  you  to  see  that 
this  is  the  true  road  to  glory,  far  preferable  to 
the  one  which  leads  to  vain  analogies  and 
speculations,  the  time  for  which  is  long  past. 
I  am  grieved  to  hear  that  you  are  not  well, 
and  that  your  eyes  refuse  their  service.  M. 
de  Humboldt  tells  me  that  you  are  seeking  a 
better  climate  here,  in  the  month  of  February. 
You  may  find  it,  perhaps,  thanks  to  our  stoves. 
But  as  we  shall  still  have  plenty  of  ice  in  the 
streets,  your  glacial  opinions  will  not  find  a 
market  at  that  season.  I  should  like  to  pre- 
sent you  with  a  memoir  or  monograph  of 
mine,  just  published,  on  Spirifer  and  Orthis, 
but  I  will  take  good  care  to  let  no  one  pay 
postage  on  a  work  which,  by  its  nature,  can 
have  but  a  very  limited  interest.  ...  I  will 
await  your  arrival  to  give  you  these  descrip- 
tions. I  am  expecting  the  numbers  of  your 
Fossil  Fishes,  which  have  not  yet  come.  Hum- 
boldt often  speaks  of  them  to  me.  Ah  !  how 
much  I  prefer  you  in  a  field  which  is  wholly 
your  own  than  in  one  where  you  break  in 

VOL.  I.  18 


274  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

upon  the  measured  and  cautious  tread,  intro- 
duced by  Saussure  in  geology.  You,  too,  will 
reconsider  all  this,  and  will  yet  treat  the  views 
of  Saussure  and  Escher  with  more  respect. 
Everything  here  turns  to  infusoria.  Ehren- 
berg  has  just  discovered  that  an  apparently 
sandy  deposit,  twenty  feet  in  thickness,  under 
the  "  Luneburgerheyde,"  is  composed  entirely 
of  infusoria  of  a  kind  still  living  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Berlin.  This  layer  rests  upon  a 
brown  deposit  known  to  be  ten  feet  in  thick- 
ness. The  latter  consists,  for  one  fifth  of  the 
depth,  of  pine  pollen,  which  burns.  The  rest 
is  of  infusoria.  Thus  these  animals,  which 
the  naked  eye  has  not  power  to  discern,  have 
themselves  the  power  to  build  up  mountain 
chains. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

1837-1839:  JET.  30-32. 

Invitation  to  Professorships  at  Geneva  and  Lausanne. — 
Death  of  his  Father.  —  Establishment  of  Lithographic 
Press  at  Neuchatel.  —  Researches  upon  Structure  of  Mol- 
lusks.  —  Internal  Casts  of  Shells.  —  Glacial  Explorations. 
—  Views  of  Buckland.  —  Relations  with  Arnold  Guyot. — 
Their  Work  together  in  the  Alps.  —  Letter  to  Sir  Philip 
Egerton  concerning  Glacial  Work.  —  Summer  of  1839.  — 
Publication  of  "  Etudes  sur  les  Glaciers." 

ALTHOUGH  Agassiz's  daring  treatment  of 
the  glacial  phenomena  had  excited  much  oppo- 
sition and  angry  comment,  it  had  also  made  a 
powerful  impression  by  its  eloquence  and  orig- 
inality. To  this  may  be  partly  due  the  fact 
that  about  this  time  he  was  strongly  urged 
from  various  quarters  to  leave  Neuchatel  for 
some  larger  field.  One  of  the  most  seductive 
of  these  invitations,  owing  to  the  affectionate 
spirit  in  which  it  was  offered,  came  through 
Monsieur  de  la  Rive,  in  Geneva. 


276  LOUIS  AGASS2Z. 

M.   AUGUSTE   DE   LA    RIVE   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

GENEVA,  May  12, 1836. 

...  I  have  not  yet  received  your  address. 
I  hope  you  will  send  it  to  me  without  delay, 
for  I  am  anxious  to  bring  it  before  our  read- 
ers. I  hope  also  that  you  will  not  forget  what 
you  have  promised  me  for  the  "  Bibliotheque 
Universelle."  I  am  exceedingly  anxious  to 
have  your  cooperation ;  the  more  so  that  it 
will  reinforce  that  of  several  distinguished 
savants  whose  assistance  I  have  recently  se- 
cured. 

If  I  weary  you  with  a  second  letter,  how- 
ever, it  is  not  only  to  remind  you  of  your 
promise  about  the  "  Bibliotheque  Universelle," 
but  for  another  object  still  more  important 
and  urgent.  The  matter  stands  thus.  Our 
academic  courses  have  just  opened  under  fa- 
vorable auspices.  The  number  of  students 
is  much  increased,  and,  especially,  we  have  a 
good  many  from  Germany  and  England.  This 
circumstance  makes  us  feel  more  strongly  the 
importance  of  completing  our  organization, 
and  of  doing  this  wisely  and  quickly.  I  will 
not  play  the  diplomat  with  you,  but  will 
frankly  say,  without  circumlocution,  that  you 
seem  to  me  the  one  essential,  the  one  indis- 


LETTER   FROM  M.   DE  LA   RIVE.       277 

pensable  man.  After  having  talked  with  some 
influential  persons  here,  I  feel  sure  that  if  you 
say  to  me,  "  I  will  come,"  I  can  obtain  for 
you  the  following  conditions :  1st.  A  regular 
salary  of  three  thousand  francs,  beside  the 
student  fees,  which,  in  view  of  the  character 
of  your  instruction,  your  reputation,  and  the 
novelty  of  your  course,  I  place  too  low  at  a 
thousand  francs ;  of  this  I  am  convinced.  2d. 
The  vacant  professorship  is  one  of  geology 
and  mineralogy,  but  should  you  wish  it  De  la 
Planche  will  continue  to  teach  the  mineralogy, 
and  you  will  replace  it  by  paleontology,  or 
any  other  subject  which  may  suit  you.  .  .  . 
Add  to  this  resource  that  of  a  popular  course 
for  the  world  outside,  ladies  and  others,  which 
you  might  give  in  the  winter,  as  at  Neu- 
chatel.  The  custom  here  is  to  pay  fifty  francs 
for  the  course  of  from  twenty-five  to  thirty 
lectures.  You  will  easily  see  that  for  such 
a  course  you  would  have  at  least  as  large  an 
audience  here  as  at  Neuchatel.  This  is  the 
more  likely  because  there  is  a  demand  for 
these  courses,  Pictet  being  dead,  and  M.  Eossi 
and  M.  de  Castella  having  ceased  to  give 
them.  No  one  has  come  forward  as  their 
heir,  fine  as  the  inheritance  is ;  some  are  too 
busy,  others  have  not  the  kind  of  talent 


278  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

needed,  and  none  have  attempted  to  replace 
these  gentlemen  in  this  especial  line,  one  in 
which  you  excel,  hoth  by  your  gifts  and  your 
fortunate  choice  of  a  subject  more  in  vogue 
just  now  than  any  other.  Come  then,  to 
work  in  this  rich  vein  before  others  present 
themselves  for  the  same  purpose.  Finally, 
since  I  must  make  up  your  budget,  the  "  Bib- 
liotheque  Universelle,"  which  pays  fifty  francs 
a  sheet,  would  be  always  open  to  you ;  there 
you  could  bring  the  fruits  of  your  produc- 
tive leisure.  Certainly  it  would  be  easy  for 
you  to  make  in  this  way  an  additional  thou- 
sand francs. 

Here,  then,  is  a  statement,  precise  and  full, 
of  the  condition  of  things,  and  of  what  you 
may  hope  to  find  here.  The  moment  is  pro- 
pitious ;  there  is  a  movement  among  us  just 
now  in  favor  of  the  sciences,  and  this  winter 
the  plan  of  a  large  building  for  our  museum 
and  library  will  be  presented  to  our  common 
council.  The  work  should  begin  next  sum- 
mer; you  well  know  how  much  we  should 
value  your  ideas  and  your  advice  on  this  sub- 
ject. There  may  also  be  question  of  a  direc- 
tor for  the  museum,  and  of  an  apartment  for 
him  in  the  new  edifice ;  you  will  not  doubt  to 
whom  such  a  place  would  be  offered.  But  let 


INVITATION  TO   GENEVA.  279 

us  not  draw  upon  the  future ;  let  us  limit  our- 
selves to  the  present,  and  see  whether  what  I 
propose  suits  you.  .  .  .  Come !  let  yourself  be 
persuaded.  Sacrifice  the  capital  to  a  provin- 
cial town.  At  Berlin,  no  doubt,  you  would  be 
happy  and  honored ;  at  Geneva,  you  would 
be  the  happiest,  the  most  honored.  Look  at 
,  who  shone  as  a  star  of  the  first  magni- 
tude at  Geneva,  and  who  is  but  a  star  of  sec- 
ond or  third  rank  in  Paris.  This,  to  be  sure, 
would  not  be  your  case ;  nevertheless,  I  am 
satisfied  that  at  Geneva,  where  you  would  be 
a  second  de  Saussure,  your  position  would  be 
still  more  brilliant.  I  know  that  these  motives 
of  scientific  self-love  have  little  weight  with 
you ;  nevertheless,  wishing  to  omit  nothing,  I 
give  them  for  what  they  are  worth.  But  my 
hope  rests  far  more  on  the  arguments  I  have 
first  presented ;  they  come  from  the  heart,  and 
with  you  the  heart  responds  as  readily  as  the 
genius.  But  enough !  I  will  not  fatigue  you 
with  farther  considerations.  I  think  I  have 
given  you  all  the  points  necessary  for  your 
decision.  Be  so  kind  as  to  let  me  know  as 
soon  as  possible  what  you  intend  to  do.  Have 
the  kindness  also  not  to  speak  of  the  contents 
of  this  letter,  and  remember  that  it  is  not  the 
Rector  of  the  Academy  of  Geneva,  but  the 


280  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Professor  Auguste  de  la  Rive,  who  writes  in 
his  own  private  person.  Promptitude  and 
silence,  then,  are  the  two  recommendations 
which  I  make  to  you  while  we  await  the  Yes 
we  so  greatly  desire.  .  .  . 

More  tempting  still  must  have  been  the  offi- 
cial invitation  received  a  few  months  later  to  a 
professorship  at  Lausanne,  strengthened  as  it 
was  by  the  affectionate  entreaties  of  relations 
and  friends,  urging  him  for  the  sake  of  fam- 
ily ties  and  patriotism  to  return  to  the  canton 
where  he  had  passed  his  earlier  years.  But  he 
had  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  Neuchatelois  and 
was  proof  against  all  arguments.  He  remained 
faithful  to  the  post  he  had  chosen  until  he 
left  it,  temporarily  as  he  then  believed,  to 
come  to  America.  The  citizens  of  his  adopted 
town  expressed  their  appreciation  of  his  loy- 
alty to  them  in  a  warm  letter  of  thanks,  beg- 
ging, at  the  same  time,  his  acceptance  of  the 
sum  of  six  thousand  francs,  payable  by  install- 
ments during  three  years. 

The  summer  of  1837  was  a  sad  one  to 
Agassiz  and  to  his  whole  family ;  his  father 
died  at  Concise,  carried  off  by  a  fever  while 
still  a  comparatively  young  man.  The  pretty 
parsonage,  to  which  they  were  so  much  at- 


FOUNDING  LITHOGRAPHIC  PRESS.    281 

tached,  passed  into  other  hands,  and  thence- 
forward the  home  of  Madame  Agassiz  was 
with  her  children,  among  whom  she  divided 
her  time. 

In  1838  Agassiz  founded  a  lithographic 
printing  establishment  in  Neuchatel,  which 
was  carried  on  for  many  years  under  his  di- 
rection. Thus  far  his  plates  had  been  litho- 
graphed in  Munich.  Their  execution  at  such 
a  distance  involved  constant  annoyance,  and 
sometimes  great  waste  of  time  and  money,  in 
sending  the  proofs  to  and  fro  for  correction. 
The  scheme  of  establishing  a  lithographic 
press,  to  be  in  a  great  degree  at  his  charge, 
was  certainly  an  imprudent  one  for  a  poor 
man;  but  Agassiz  hoped  not  only  to  facilitate 
his  own  publications  by  this  means,  but  also 
to  raise  the  standard  of  execution  in  works  of 
a  purely  scientific  character.  Supported  partly 
by  his  own  exertions,  partly  by  the  generosity 
of  others,  the  establishment  was  almost  exclu- 
sively dependent  upon  him  for  its  unceasing 
activity.  He  was  fortunate  in  securing  for 
its  head  M.  Hercule  Nicolet,  a  very  able  litho- 
graphic artist,  who  had  had  much  experience 
in  engraving  objects  of  natural  history,  and 
was  specially  versed  in  the  recently  invented 
art  of  chromatic  lithography. 


282  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Agassiz  was  now  driving  all  his  steeds 
abreast.  Beside  his  duties  as  professor,  he 
was  printing  at  the  same  tune  his  "  Fossil 
Fishes,"  his  "  Fresh-Water  Fishes,"  and  his  in- 
vestigations on  fossil  Echinoderms  and  Mol- 

o 

lusks,  —  the  illustrations  for  all  these  various 
works  being  under  his  daily  supervision.  The 
execution  of  these  plates,  under  M.  Nicolet's 
care,  was  admirable  for  the  period.  Professor 
Arnold  Guyot,  in  his  memoir  of  Agassiz,  says 
of  the  plates  for  the  "Fresh-Water  Fishes"  : 
"  We  wonder  at  their  beauty,  and  at  their  per- 
fection of  color  and  outline,  when  we  remem- 
ber that  they  were  almost  the  first  essays  of 
the  newly  -  invented  art  of  lithochromy,  pro- 
duced at  a  time  when  France  and  Belgium 
were  showering  rewards  on  very  inferior  work 
of  the  kind,  as  the  foremost  specimens  of  pro- 
gress in  the  art." 

All  this  work  could  hardly  be  carried  on 
single  handed.  In  1837  M.  Edouard  Desor 
joined  Agassiz  in  Neuchatel,  and  became  for 
many  years  his  intimate  associate  in  scientific 
labors.  A  year  or  two  later  M.  Charles  Vogt 
also  united  himself  to  the  band  of  investiga- 
tors and  artists  who  had  clustered  about  Agas- 
siz as  their  central  force.  M.  Ernest  Favre 
says  of  this  period  of  his  life :  "He  displayed 


METHOD  FOR   STUDY  OF  MOLLUSKS.     283 

during  these  years  an  incredible  energy,  of 
which  the  history  of  science  offers,  perhaps, 
no  other  example." 

Among  his  most  important  zoological  re- 
searches at  this  time  were  those  upon  mol- 
lusks.  His  method  of  studying  this  class  was 
too  original  and  too  characteristic  to  be  passed 
by  without  notice  The  science  of  conchology 
had  heretofore  been  based  almost  wholly  upon 
the  study  of  the  empty  shells.  To  Agassiz 
this  seemed  superficial.  Longing  to  know 
more  of  the  relation  between  the  animal  and 
its  outer  covering,  he  bethought  himself  that 
the  inner  moulding  of  the  shell  would  give 
at  least  the  form  of  its  old  inhabitant.  For 
the  practical  work  he  engaged  an  admirable 
moulder,  M.  Stahl,  who  continued  to  be  one 
of  his  staff  at  the  lithographic  establishment 
until  he  became  permanently  employed  at  the 
Jardin  des  Plantes.  With  his  help  and  that 
of  M.  Henri  Ladame,  professor  of  physics  and 
chemistry  at  Neuchatel,  who  prepared  the  del- 
icate metal  alloys  in  which  the  first  mould  was 
taken,  Agassiz  obtained  casts  in  which  the 
form  of  the  animals  belonging  to  the  shells 
was  perfectly  reproduced.  This  method  has 
since  passed  into  universal  use.  By  its  aid  he 
obtained  a  new  means  of  ascertaining  the  re- 


284  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

lations  between  fossil  and  living  mollusks.  It 
was  of  vast  service  to  him  in  preparing  his 
"  Etudes  critiques  sur  les  Mollusques  f  ossiles," 
—  a  quarto  volume  with  nearly  one  hundred 
plates. 

The  following  letter  to  Sir  Philip  Egerton 
gives  some  account  of  his  undertakings  at  this 
time,  and  of  the  difficulties  entailed  upon  him 
by  their  number  and  variety. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO   SIR   PHILIP   EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL,  August  10,  1838. 
.  .  .  These  last  months  have  been  a  tune 
of  trial  to  me,  and  I  have  been  forced  to  give 
up  my  correspondence  completely  in  order  to 
meet  the  ever-increasing  demands  of  my  work. 
You  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  find  a  quiet 
moment  and  an  easy  mind  for  writing,  when 
one  is  pursued  by  printing  or  lithographic 
proofs,  and  forced  besides  to  prepare  unceas- 
ing occupation  for  numerous  employes.  Add 
to  this  the  close  research  required  by  the  work 
of  editing,  and  you  surely  will  find  an  excuse 
for  my  delay.  I  think  I  have  already  written 
you  that  in  order  to  have  everything  under  my 
own  eye,  I  had  founded  a  lithographic  estab- 
lishment at  Neuchatel  in  the  hope  of  avoid- 
ing in  future  the  procrastinations  to  which 


LETTER    TO  SIR   PHILIP  EGERTON.    285 

my  proofs  were  liable  when  the  work  was  done 
at  Munich.  ...  I  hope  that  my  new  publica- 
tions will  be  sufficiently  well  received  to  jus- 
tify me  in  supporting  an  establishment  unique 
of  its  kind,  which  I  have  founded  solely  in  the 
interest  of  science  and  at  the  risk  of  my  peace 
and  my  health.  If  I  give  you  all  these  details, 
it  is  simply  to  explain  my  silence,  which  was 
caused  not  by  pure  negligence,  but  by  the  de- 
mands of  an  undertaking  in  the  success  of 
which  my  very  existence  is  involved.  .  .  . 
This  week  I  shall  forward  to  the  Secretary  of 
the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement 
of  Science  all  that  I  have  been  able  to  do 
thus  far,  being  unable  to  bring  it  myself, 
as  I  had  hoped.  You  would  oblige  me  greatly 
if  you  would  give  a  look  at  these  different 
works,  which  may,  I  hope,  have  various  claims 
on  your  interest.  First,  there  is  the  tenth 
number  of  the  "Fossil  Fishes,"  though  the 
whole  supply  of  publisher's  copies  will  only 
be  sent  a  few  weeks  later.  Then  there  are 
the  seven  first  plates  of  my  sea-urchins,  en- 
graved with  much  care  and  with  many  details. 
A  third  series  of  plates  relates  to  critical  stud- 
ies on  fossil  mollusks,  little  or  erroneously 
known,  and  on  their  internal  casts.  This  is  a 
quite  novel  side  of  the  study  of  shells,  and 


286  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

will  throw  light  on  the  organization  of  ani- 
mals known  hitherto  only  by  the  shell.  I 
have  made  a  plaster  collection  of  them  for  the 
Geological  Society.  They  have  been  packed 
some  time,  but  my  late  journey  to  Paris  has 
prevented  me  from  forwarding  them  till  now. 
As  soon  as  I  have  a  moment,  I  shall  make  out 
the  catalogue  and  send  it  on.  When  you  go 
to  London,  do  not  fail  to  examine  them ;  the 
result  is  curious  enough.  Finally,  the  plates 
for  the  first  number  of  my  "  Fresh  -  Water 
Fishes "  are  in  great  part  finished,  and  also 
included  in  my  package  for  Newcastle.  .  .  . 
The  plates  are  executed  by  a  new  process,  and 
printed  in  various  tints  on  different  stones,  re- 
sulting in  a  remarkable  uniformity  of  coloring 
in  all  the  impressions.  .  .  . 

Such  are  the  new  credentials  with  which  I 
present  myself,  as  I  bring  my  thanks  for  the 
honor  paid  to  me  by  my  nomination  for  the 
vacancy  in  the  Royal  Society  of  London.  If 
unbounded  devotion  to  the  interests  of  science 
constituted  a  sufficient  title  to  such  a  distinc- 
tion, I  should  be  the  less  surprised  at  the 
announcement  contained  in  your  last  letter. 
The  action  of  the  Royal  Society,  so  flattering 
to  the  candidate  of  your  choice,  has  satisfied  a 
desire  which  I  should  hardly  have  dared  to 


GLACIAL  EXPLORATIONS.  287 

form  for  many  a  year,  —  that  of  becoming  a 
member  of  a  body  so  illustrious  as  the  Royal 
Society  of  London.  .  .  . 

Each  time  I  write  I  wish  I  could  close  with 
the  hope  of  seeing  you  soon ;  but  I  must  work 
incessantly ;  that  is  my  lot,  and  the  happiness 
I  find  in  it  gives  a  charm  to  my  occupations 
however  numerous  they  may  be.  ... 

While  Agassiz's  various  zoological  works 
were  thus  pressed  with  unceasing  activity,  the 
glaciers  and  their  attendant  phenomena,  which 
had  so  captivated  his  imagination,  were  ever 
present  to  his  thought.  In  August  of  the 
year  1838,  a  year  after  he  had  announced  at 
the  meeting  of  the  Helvetic  Society  his  com- 
prehensive theory  respecting  the  action  of 
ice  over  the  whole  northern  hemisphere,  he 
made  two  important  excursions  in  the  Alps. 
The  first  was  to  the  valley  of  Hassli,  the 
second  to  the  glaciers  of  Mont  Blanc.  In 
both  he  was  accompanied  by  his  scientific 
collaborator,  M.  Desor,  whose  intrepidity  and 
ardor  hardly  fell  short  of  his  own ;  by  Mr. 
Dinkel  as  artist,  and  by  one  or  two  students 
and  friends.  These  excursions  were  a  kind 
of  prelude  to  his  more  prolonged  sojourns  on 
the  Alps,  and  to  the  series  of  observations  car- 


288  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

ried  on  by  him  and  his  companions,  which  at- 
tracted so  much  attention  in  later  years.  But 
though  Agassiz  carried  with  him,  on  these 
first  explorations,  only  the  simplest  means  of 
investigation  and  experiment,  they  were  no 
amateur  excursions.  On  these  first  Alpine 
journeys  he  had  in  his  mind  the  sketch  he 
meant  to  fill  out.  The  significance  of  the 
phenomena  was  already  clear  to  him.  What 
he  sought  was  the  connection.  Following 
the  same  comparative  method,  he  intended  to 
track  the  footsteps  of  the  ice  as  he  had  gath- 
ered and  put  together  the  fragments  of  his 
fossil  fishes,  till  the  scattered  facts  should  fall 
into  their  natural  order  once  more  and  tell 
their  story  from  beginning  to  end. 

In  his  explorations  of  1838  he  found  every- 
where the  same  phenomena ;  the  grooved  and 
polished  and  graven  surfaces  and  the  rounded 
and  modeled  rocks,  often  lying  far  above  and 
beyond  the  present  limits  of  the  glaciers;  the 
old  moraines,  long  deserted  by  the  ice,  but  de- 
fining its  ancient  frontiers ;  the  erratic  blocks, 
transported  far  from  their  place  of  origin  and 
disposed  in  an  order  and  position  unexplained 
by  the  agency  of  water. 

These  excursions,  though  not  without  their 
dangers  and  fatigues,  were  full  of  charm  for 


ATTEMPT  AT  AN  ENGLISH  LETTER.     289 

men  who,  however  serious  their  aims,  were 
still  young  enough  to  enter  like  boys  into  the 
spirit  of  adventure.  Agassiz  himself  was  but 
thirty-one  ;  an  ardent  pedestrian,  he  delighted 
in  feats  of  walking  and  climbing.  His  friend 
Dinkel  relates  that  one  day,  while  pausing  at 
Grindelwald  for  refreshment,  they  met  an  el- 
derly traveler  who  asked  him,  after  listening 
awhile  to  their  gay  talk,  in  which  appeals  were 
constantly  made  to  "  Agassiz,"  if  that  was 
perhaps  the  son  of  the  celebrated  professor 
of  Neuchatel.  The  answer  amazed  him ;  he 
could  hardly  believe  that  the  young  man  be- 
fore him  was  the  naturalist  of  European  rep- 
utation. In  connection  with  this  journey  oc- 
curs the  first  attempt  at  an  English  letter 
found  among  Agassiz's  papers.  It  is  addressed 
to  Buckland,  and  contains  this  passage :  "Since 
I  saw  the  glaciers  I  am  quite  of  a  snowy  hu- 
mor, and  will  have  the  whole  surface  of  the 
earth  covered  with  ice,  and  the  whole  prior 
creation  dead  by  cold.  In  fact,  I  am  quite 
satisfied  that  ice  must  be  taken  [included]  in 
every  complete  explanation  of  the  last  changes 
which  occurred  at  the  surface  of  Europe." 
Considered  in  connection  with  their  subse- 
quent work  together  in  the  ancient  ice-beds 
and  moraines  of  England,  Scotland,  Ireland, 

VOL   I.  19 


290  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

and  Wales,  it  is  curious  to  find  Buckland  an- 
swering :  "I  am  sorry  that  I  cannot  entirely 
adopt  the  new  theory  you  advocate  to  explain 
transported  blocks  by  moraines ;  for  suppos- 
ing it  adequate  to  explain  the  phenomena  of 
Switzerland,  it  would  not  apply  to  the  gran- 
ite blocks  and  transported  gravel  of  England, 
which  I  can  only  explain  by  referring  to  cur- 
rents of  water."  During  the  same  summer 
Mrs.  Buckland  writes  from  Interlaken,  in  the 
course  of  a  journey  in  Switzerland  with  her 
husband.  .  .  .  "We  have  made  a  good  tour 
of  the  Oberland  and  have  seen  glaciers,  etc., 
but  Dr.  Buckland  is  as  far  as  ever  from  agree- 
ing with  you."  We  shall  see  hereafter  how 
completely  he  became  a  convert  to  Agassiz's 
glacial  theory  in  its  widest  acceptation. 

One  friend,  scarcely  mentioned  thus  far  in 
this  biography,  was  yet,  from  the  beginning, 
the  close  associate  of  Agassiz's  glacier  work. 
Arnold  Guyot  and  he  had  been  friends  from 
boyhood.  Their  university  life  separated  them 
for  a  time,  Guyot  being  at  Berlin  while  Agas- 
siz  was  at  Munich,  and  they  became  colleagues 
at  Neuchatel  only  after  Agassiz  had  been  for 
some  years  established  there.  From  that  tune 
forward  there  was  hardly  any  break  in  their 
intercourse ;  they  came  to  America  at  about 


RELATIONS   WITH  ARNOLD   GUYOT.     291 

the  same  time,  and  finally  settled  as  profes- 
sors, the  one  at  Harvard  College,  in  Cam- 
bridge, Massachusetts,  and  the  other  at  the 
College  of  New  Jersey,  in  Princeton.  They 
shared  all  their  scientific  interests ;  and  when 
they  were  both  old  men,  Guyot  brought  to 
Agassiz' s  final  undertaking,  the  establishment 
of  a  summer  school  at  Penikese,  a  coopera- 
tion as  active  and  affectionate  as  that  he  had 
given  in  his  youth  to  his  friend's  scheme  for 
establishing  a  permanent  scientific  summer 
station  in  the  high  Alps. 

In  a  short  visit  made  by  Agassiz  to  Paris  in 
the  spring  of  1838  he  unfolded  his  whole 
plan  to  Guyot,  then  residing  there,  and  per- 
suaded him  to  undertake  a  certain  part  of  the 
investigation.  During  this  very  summer  of 
1838,  therefore,  while  Agassiz  was  tracing  the 
ancient  limits  of  the  ice  in  the  Bernese  Ober- 
land  and  the  Haut  Valais,  and  later,  in  the 
valley  of  Chamounix,  Guyot  was  studying  the 
structure  and  movement  of  the  ice  during  a 
six  weeks'  tour  in  the  central  Alps.  At  the 
conclusion  of  their  respective  journeys  they 
met  to  compare  notes,  at  the  session  of  the 
Geological  Society  of  France,  at  Porrentruy, 
where  Agassiz  made  a  report  upon  the  gen- 
eral results  of  his  summer's  work;  while  Guyot 


292  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

read  a  paper,  the  contents  of  which  have 
never  been  fully  published,  upon  the  move- 
ment of  glaciers  and  upon  their  internal  fea- 
tures, including  the  laminated  structure  of  the 
ice,  the  so-called  blue  bands,  deep  down  in  the 
mass  of  the  glacier.1  In  the  succeeding  years 
of  their  glacial  researches  together,  Guyot  took 
for  his  share  the  more  special  geological  prob- 
lems, the  distribution  of  erratic  boulders  and 
of  the  glacial  drift,  as  connected  with  the  an- 
cient extension  of  the  glaciers.  This  led  him 
away  from  the  central  station  of  observation 
to  remoter  valleys  on  the  northern  and  south- 
ern slopes  of  the  Alps,  where  he  followed  the 
descent  of  the  glacial  phenomena  to  the  plains 
of  central  Europe  on  the  one  side  and  to  those 
of  northern  Italy  on  the  other.  We  therefore 
seldom  hear  of  him  with  the  band  of  workers 
who  finally  settled  on  the  glacier  of  the  Aar, 
because  his  share  of  the  undertaking  became 
a  more  isolated  one.  It  was  nevertheless  an 
integral  part  of  the  original  scheme,  which  was 
carried  on  connectedly  to  the  end,  the  results 
of  the  work  in  the  different  departments  being 
constantly  reported  and  compared.  So  much 
was  this  the  case,  that  the  intention  of  Agas- 

1  See  Memoir  of  Louis  Agassiz,  by  Arnold  Guyot,  written 
for  the  United  States  National  Academy  of  Sciences,  p.  38. 


WORK   IN   THE  ALPS.  293 

siz  had  been  to  embody  the  whole  in  a  publi- 
cation, the  first  part  of  which  should  contain 
the  glacial  system  of  Agassiz  ;  the  second  the 
Alpine  erratics,  by  Guyot;  while  the  third 
and  final  portion,  by  E.  Desor,  should  treat  of 
the  erratic  phenomena  outside  of  Switzerland. 
The  first  volume  alone  was  completed.  Un- 
looked  for  circumstances  made  the  continuation 
of  the  work  impossible,  and  the  five  thousand 
specimens  of  the  erratic  rocks  of  Switzerland 
collected  by  Professor  Guyot,  in  preparation 
for  his  part  of  the  publication,  are  now  depos- 
ited in  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  at  Prince- 
ton. 

In  the  following  summer  of  1839  Agassiz 
took  the  chain  of  Monte  Rosa  and  Matterhorn 
as  the  field  of  a  larger  and  more  systematic 
observation.  On  this  occasion,  the  usual  party 
consisting  of  Agassiz,  Desor,  M.  Bettanier,  an 
artist,  and  two  or  three  other  friends,  was 
joined  by  the  geologist  Studer.  Up  to  this 
time  he  had  been  a  powerful  opponent  of 
Agassiz's  views,  and  his  conversion  to  the  gla- 
cial theory  during  this  excursion  was  looked 
upon  by  them  all  as  a  victory  greater  than 
any  gained  over  the  regions  of  ice  and  snow. 
Some  account  of  this  journey  occurs  in  the 
following  letter. 


294  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ    TO   SIR   PHILIP   EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL,  September  10,  1839. 
.  .  .  Under  these  circumstances,  I  thought 
I  could  not  do  better  than  to  pass  some  weeks 
in  the  solitude  of  the  high  Alps ;  I  lived 
about  a  fortnight  in  the  region  of  the  glaciers, 
ascending  some  new  field  of  ice  every  day,  and 
trying  to  scale  the  sides  of  our  highest  peaks. 
I  thus  examined  in  succession  all  the  glaciers 
descending  from  the  majestic  summits  of 
Monte  Rosa  and  the  Matterhorn,  whose  nu- 
merous crests  form  a  most  gigantic  amphithe- 
atre, which  lifts  itself  above  the  everlasting 
snow.  Afterward  I  visited  the  sea  of  ice 
which,  under  the  name  of  the  glacier  of 
Aletsch,  flows  from  the  Jungfrau,  the  Mb'nch, 
and  the  Eiger  toward  Brieg ;  thence  I  went 
to  the  glacier  of  the  Rhone,  and  from  there, 
establishing  my  headquarters  at  the  Hospice 
of  the  Grimsel,  I  followed  the  glacier  of  the 
Aar  to  the  foot  of  the  Finsteraarhorn.  There 
I  ascertained  the  most  important  fact  that 
I  now  know  concerning  the  advance  of  gla- 
ciers, namely,  that  the  cabin  constructed  by 
Hugi  in  1827,  at  the  foot  of  the  Absch- 
wung,  is  now  four  thousand  feet  lower  down. 
Slight  as  is  the  inclination  of  the  glacier,  this 


ETUDES  SUR  LES   GLACIERS.          295 

cabin  has  been  carried  on  by  the  ice  with  as- 
tonishing rapidity,  and  still  more  important  is 
it  that  this  rapidity  has  been  on  the  increase; 
for  in  1830  the  cabin  was  only  some  hundred 
feet  from  the  rock,  in  1836  it  had  already 
passed  over  a  distance  from  [word  torn  away] 
of  two  thousand  feet,  and  in  the  last  three 
years  it  has  again  doubled  that  distance.  Not 
only  have  I  confirmed  my  views  upon  glaciers 
and  their  attendant  phenomena,  on  this  new 
ground,  but  I  have  completed  my  examina- 
tion of  a  number  of  details,  and  have  had  be- 
sides the  satisfaction  of  convincing  one  of  my 
most  severe  opponents  of  the  exactness  of  my 
observations,  namely,  M.  Studer,  who  accom- 
panied me  on  a  part  of  these  excursions.  .  .  . 

The  winter  of  1840  was  fully  occupied  by 
the  preparation  for  the  publication  of  the 
"  Etudes  sur  les  Glaciers,"  which  appeared 
before  the  year  was  out,  accompanied  by  an 
atlas  of  thirty-two  plates.  The  volume  of 
text  consisted  of  an  historical  resume  of  all 
that  had  previously  been  done  in  the  study  of 
glaciers,  followed  by  an  account  of  the  obser- 
vations of  Agassiz  and  his  companions  during 
the  last  three  or  four  years  upon  the  glaciers 
of  the  Alps.  Their  structure,  external  aspect, 


296  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

needles,  tables,  perched  blocks,  gravel  cones, 
rifts,  and  crevasses,  as  well  as  their  movements, 
mode  of  formation,  and  internal  temperature, 
were  treated  in  succession.  But  the  most  in- 
teresting chapters,  from  the  author's  own 
point  of  view,  and  those  which  were  most 
novel  for  his  readers,  were  the  concluding 
ones  upon  the  ancient  extension  of  the  Swiss 
glaciers,  and  upon  the  former  existence  of  an 
immense,  unbroken  sheet  of  ice,  which  had 
once  covered  the  whole  northern  hemisphere. 
No  one  before  had  drawn  such  vast  conclu- 
sions from  the  local  phenomena  of  the  Alpine 
valleys.  "  The  surface  of  Europe,"  says  Agas- 
siz,  "  adorned  before  by  a  tropical  vegetation 
and  inhabited  by  troops  of  large  elephants, 
enormous  hippopotami,  and  gigantic  carniv- 
ora,  was  suddenly  buried  under  a  vast  mantle 
of  ice,  covering  alike  plains,  lakes,  seas  and 
plateaus.  Upon  the  life  and  movement  of 
a  powerful  creation  fell  the  silence  of  death. 
Springs  paused,  rivers  ceased  to  flow,  the  rays 
of  the  sun,  rising  upon  this  frozen  shore  (if, 
indeed,  it  was  reached  by  them),  were  met 
only  by  the  breath  of  the  winter  from  the 
north  and  the  thunders  of  the  crevasses  as 
they  opened  across  the  surface  of  this  icy 
sea."  *  The  author  goes  on  to  state  that  on 

1  Etudes  sur  les  Glaciers.     Chapter  xviii.  p.  315. 


ICE  PERIOD.  297 

the  breaking  up  of  this  universal  shroud  the 
ice  must  have  lingered  longest  in  mountainous 
strongholds,  and  that  all  these  fastnesses  of 
retreat  became,  as  the  Alps  are  now,  centres 
of  distribution  for  the  broken  debris  and 
rocky  fragments  which  are  found  scattered 
with  a  kind  of  regularity  along  certain  lines, 
and  over  given  areas  in  northern  and  central 
Europe.  How  he  followed  out  this  idea  in 
his  subsequent  investigations  will  be  seen  here- 
after. 


CHAPTER  X. 

1840-1842:  ^T.  33-35. 

Summer  Station  on  the  Glacier  of  the  Aar.  —  Hotel  des 
Neuchatelois.  —  Members  of  the  Party.  —  Work  on  the 
Glacier.  —  Ascent  of  the  Strahleck  and  the  Siedelhorn.  — 
Visit  to  England.  —  Search  for  Glacial  Remains  in  Great 
Britain.  —  Roads  of  Glen  Roy.  —  Views  of  English  Natu- 
ralists concerning  Agassiz's  Glacial  Theory.  —  Letter  from 
Humboldt.  —  Winter  Visit  to  Glacier.  —  Summer  of  1841 
on  the  Glacier.  —  Descent  into  the  Glacier.  —  Ascent  of  the 
Jungfrau. 

IN  the  summer  of  1840  Agassiz  made  his 
first  permanent  station  on  the  Alps.  Hitherto 
the  external  phenomena,  the  relation  of  the 
ice  to  its  surroundings,  and  its  influence  upon 
them,  had  been  the  chief  study.  Now  the 
glacier  itself  was  to  be  the  main  subject  of  in- 
vestigation, and  he  took  with  him  a  variety  of 
instruments  for  testing  temperatures  :  barome- 
ters, thermometers,  hygrometers,  and  psychom- 
eters  ;  beside  a  boring  apparatus,  by  means  of 
which  self -registering  thermometers  might  be 
lowered  into  the  heart  of  the  glacier.  To 
these  were  added  microscopes  for  the  study  of 


HOTEL  DBS  NEUCHATELOIS.  299 

such  insects  and  plants  as  might  be  found  in 
these  ice-bound  regions.  The  Hospice  of  the 
Grimsel  was  selected  as  his  base  of  supplies, 
and  as  guides  Jacob  Leuthold  and  Johann 
Wahren  were  chosen.  Both  of  these  had  ac- 
companied Hugi  in  his  ascension  of  the  Fin- 
steraarhorn  in  1828,  and  both  were  therefore 
thoroughly  familiar  with  all  the  dangers  of 
Alpine  climbing.  The  lower  Aar  glacier  was 
to  be  the  scene  of  their  continuous  work,  and 
the  centre  from  which  their  ascents  of  the 
neighboring  summits  would  be  made.  Here, 
on  the  great  median  moraine,  stood  a  huge 
boulder  of  micaceous  schist.  Its  upper  sur- 
face projected  so  as  to  form  a  roof,  and  by 
closing  it  in  on  one  side  with  a  stone  wall, 
leveling  the  floor  by  a  judicious  arrangement 
of  flat  slabs,  and  rigging  a  blanket  in  front 
to  serve  as  a  curtain  across  the  entrance,  the 
whole  was  presently  transformed  into  a  rude 
hut,  where  six  persons  could  find  sleeping- 
room.  A  recess,  sheltered  by  the  rock  out- 
side, served  as  kitchen  and  dining-room ;  while 
an  empty  space  under  another  large  boulder 
was  utilized  as  a  cellar  for  the  keeping  of  pro- 
visions. This  was  the  abode  so  well  known 
afterward  as  the  Hotel  des  Neuchatelois.  Its 
first  occupants  were  Louis  Agassiz,  Edouard 


300  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Desor,  Charles  Vogt,  Frangois  de  Pourtales, 
Ce'lestin  Nicolet,  and  Henri  Coulon.  It  af- 
forded, perhaps,  as  good  a  shelter  as  they 
could  have  found  in  the  old  cabin  of  Hugi, 
where  they  had  hoped  to  make  their  tempo- 
rary home.  In  this  they  were  disappointed, 
for  the  cabin  had  crumbled  on  its  last  glacial 
journey.  The  wreck  was  lying  two  hundred 
feet  below  the  spot  where  they  had  seen  the 
walls  still  standing  the  year  before. 

The  work  was  at  once  distributed  among 
the  different  members  of  the  party,  —  Agas- 
siz  himself,  assisted  by  his  young  friend  and 
favorite  pupil,  Frangois  de  Pourtales,  retain- 
ing for  his  own  share  the  meteorological  ob- 
servations, and  especially  those  upon  the  inter- 
nal temperature  of  the  glaciers.1  To  M.  Vogt 
fell  the  microscopic  study  of  the  red  snow 
and  the  organic  life  contained  in  it;  to  M. 
Nicolet,  the  flora  of  the  glaciers  and  the  sur- 
rounding rocks ;  to  M.  Desor,  the  glacial  phe- 
nomena proper,  including  those  of  the  mo- 
raines. He  had  the  companionship  and  assist- 

1  See  "Tables  of  Temperature,  Measurements,"  etc.,  in 
Agassiz's  Systems  Glaciaire.  These  results  are  also  recorded 
in  a  volume  entitled  Sejours  dans  les  Glaciers,  by  Edouard 
Desor,  a  collection  of  very  bright  and  entertaining  articles 
upon  the  excursions  and  sojourns  made  in  the  Alps,  during 
successive  summers,  by  Agassiz  and  his  scientific  staff. 


WORK  ON  THE  GLACIER.  301 

ance  of  M.  Henri  Coulon  in  the  long  and 
laborious  excursions  required  for  this  part  of 
the  work. 

This  is  not  the  place  for  scientific  details. 
For  the  results  of  Agassiz's  researches  on  the 
Alpine  glaciers,  to  which  he  devoted  much  of 
his  time  and  energy  during  ten  years,  from 
1836  to  1846,  the  reader  is  referred  to  his 
two  larger  works  on  this  subject,  the  "  Etudes 
sur  les  Glaciers,"  and  the  "  Systeme  Glaciaire." 
Of  the  work  accomplished  by  him  and  his 
companions  during  these  years  this  slight  sum- 
mary is  given  by  his  friend  Guyot.1  "  The 
position  of  eighteen  of  the  most  prominent 
rocks  on  the  glacier  was  determined  by  care- 
ful triangulation  by  a  skillful  engineer,  and 
measured  year  after  year  to  establish  the  rate 
of  motion  of  every  part.  The  differences  in 
the  rate  of  motion  in  the  upper  and  lower 
part  of  the  glacier,  as  well  as  in  different  sea- 
sons of  the  year,  was  ascertained ;  the  amount 
of  the  annual  melting  was  computed,  and  all 
the  phenomena  connected  with  it  studied.  All 
the  surrounding  peaks,  —  the  Jungfrau,  the 
Schreckhorn,  the  Finsteraarhorn,  most  of  them 

1  See  Biographical  Sketch,  published  by  Professor  A. 
Guyot,  under  the  auspices  of  the  United  States  National 
Academy. 


302  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

until  then  reputed  unscalable,  —  were  ascend- 
ed, and  the  limit  of  glacial  action  discovered ; 
in  short  all  the  physical  laws  of  the  glacier 
were  brought  to  light." 

We  now  return  to  the  personal  narrative. 
After  a  number  of  days  spent  in  the  study  of 
the  local  phenomena,  the  band  of  workers 
turned  their  attention  to  the  second  part  of 
their  programme,  namely,  the  ascent  of  the 
Strahleck,  by  crossing  which  and  descending 
on  the  other  side,  they  intended  to  reach  Grin- 
delwald.  One  morning,  then,  toward  the  end 
of  August,  their  guides,  according  to  agree- 
ment, aroused  them  at  three  o'clock,  —  an 
hour  earlier  than  their  usual  roll-call.  The 
first  glance  outside  spread  a  general  chill  of 
disappointment  over  the  party,  for  they  found 
themselves  beleaguered  by  a  wrall  of  fog  on 
every  side.  But  Leuthold,  as  he  lighted  the 
fire  and  prepared  breakfast,  bade  them  not 
despair,  —  the  sun  might  make  all  right.  In  a 
few  moments,  one  by  one,  the  summits  of  the 
Schreckhorn,  the  Finsteraarhorn,  the  Ober- 
aarhorn,  the  Altmaner,  the  Scheuchzerhorn, 
lighted  by  the  first  rays  of  the  sun,  came  out 
like  islands  above  the  ocean  of  mist,  which 
softly  broke  away  and  vanished  with  the  ad- 
vancing  light.  In  a,bou'o  three  hours  they 


ASCENT  OF  THE  STRAHLECK.         303 

reached  the  base  of  the  Strahleck.  Their  two 
guides,  Leuthold  and  Wahren,  had  engaged 
three  additional  men  for  this  excursion,  so  that 
they  now  had  five  guides,  none  of  whom  were 
superfluous,  since  they  carried  with  them  va- 
rious barometric  instruments  which  required 
careful  handling.  They  began  the  ascent  in 
single  file,  but  the  slopes  soon  became  so  steep 
and  the  light  snow  (in  which  they  floundered 
to  the  knees  at  every  step)  so  deep,  that  the 
guides  resorted  to  the  usual  method  in  such 
cases  of  tying  them  all  together.  The  two 
head  guides  alone,  Leuthold  and  Wahren,  re- 
mained detached,  clearing  the  snow  in  front 
of  them,  cutting  steps  in  the  ice,  and  giving 
warning,  by  cry  and  gesture,  of  any  hidden 
danger  in  the  path.  At  nine  o'clock,  after  an 
hour's  climbing,  they  stepped  upon  the  small 
plateau,  evenly  covered  with  unbroken  snow, 
formed  by  the  summit  of  the  Strahleck. 

The  day  had  proved  magnificent.  With  a 
clear  sky  above  them,  they  looked  down  upon 
the  valley  of  Grindelwald  at  their  feet,  while 
around  and  below  them  gathered  the  Schei- 
deck  and  the  Faulhorn,  the  pyramidal  outline 
of  the  Niesen,  and  the  chain  of  the  Stock- 
horn.  In  front  lay  the  great  masses  of  the 
Eiger  and  the  Monch,  while  to  the  southwest 


304  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

the  Jungfrau  rose  above  the  long  chain  of 
the  Viescherhorner.  The  first  pause  of  silent 
wonder  and  delight,  while  they  released  them- 
selves from  their  cords  and  arranged  their  in- 
struments, seems  to  have  been  succeeded  by 
an  outburst  of  spirits ;  for  in  the  journal  of 
the  youngest  of  the  party,  FranQois  de  Pour- 
tales,  then  a  lad  of  seventeen,  we  read  :  "  The 
guides  began  to  wrestle  and  we  to  dance, 
when  suddenly  we  saw  a  female  chamois,  fol- 
lowed by  her  young,  ascending  a  neighboring 
slope,  and  presently  four  or  five  more  stretched 
their  necks  over  a  rock,  as  if  to  see  what  was 
going  on.  Breathless  the  wrestlers  and  the 
dancers  paused,  fearing  to  disturb  by  the 
slightest  movement  creatures  so  shy  of  human 
approach.  They  drew  nearer  until  within  easy 
gunshot  distance,  and  then  galloping  along  the 
opposite  ridge  disappeared  over  the  summit." 
The  party  passed  more  than  an  hour  on 
the  top  of  the  Strahleck,  making  observations 
and  taking  measurements.  Then  having  rested 
and  broken  their  fast  with  such  provisions  as 
they  had  brought,  they  prepared  for  a  descent, 
which  proved  the  more  rapid,  since  much  of  it 
was  a  long  slide.  Tied  together  once  more, 
they  slid,  wherever  they  found  it  possible 
to  exchange  the  painful  and  difficult  walking 


RETURN  TO   THE  AAR   GLACIER.      305 

for  this  simpler  process.  "  Once  below  these 
slopes  of  snow,"  says  the  journal  of  young 
de  Pourtales  again,  "  rocks  almost  vertical,  or 
narrow  ledges  covered  with  grass,  served  us 
as  a  road  and  brought  us  to  the  glacier  of  the 
Grindelwald.  To  reach  the  glacier  itself  we 
traversed  a  crevasse  of  great  depth,  and  some 
twenty  feet  wide,  on  a  bridge  of  ice,  one  or 
two  feet  in  width,  and  broken  toward  the  end, 
where  we  were  obliged  to  spring  across.  Once 
on  the  glacier  the  rest  was  nothing.  The  race 
was  to  the  fastest,  and  we  were  soon  on  the 
path  of  the  tourists."  Reaching  the  village  of 
Grindelwald  at  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
they  found  it  difficult  to  persuade  the  people 
at  the  inn  that  they  had  left  the  glacier  of 
the  Aar  that  morning.  From  Grindelwald 
they  returned  by  the  Scheideck  to  the  Grim- 
sel,  visiting  on  their  way  the  upper  glacier  of 
Grindelwald,  the  glacier  of  Schwartzwald,  and 
that  of  Rosenlaui,  in  order  to  see  how  far  these 
had  advanced  since  their  last  visit  to  them. 
After  a  short  rest  at  the  Hospice  of  the  Grim- 
sel,  Agassiz  returned  with  two  or  three  of  his 
companions  to  their  hut  on  the  Aar  glacier 
for  the  purpose  of  driving  stakes  into  the 
holes  previously  bored  in  the  ice.  He  hoped 
by  means  of  these  stakes  to  learn  the  follow- 

VOL.  I.  20 


306  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

ing  year  what  had  been  the  rate  of  movement 
of  the  glacier.  The  summer's  work  closed 
with  the  ascent  of  the  Siedelhorn.  In  all 
these  ascents,  the  utmost  pains  was  taken  to 
ascertain  how  far  the  action  of  the  ice  might 
be  traced  upon  these  mountain  peaks  and  the 
limits  determined  at  which  the  polished  sur- 
faces ceased,  giving  place  to  the  rough,  an- 
gular rock  which  had  never  been  modeled  by 
the  ice. 

Agassiz  had  hardly  returned  from  the  Alps 
when  he  started  for  England.  He  had  long 
believed  that  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  the 
hilly  Lake  Country  of  England,  and  the  moun- 
tains of  Wales  and  Ireland,  would  present  the 
same  phenomena  as  the  valleys  of  the  Alps. 
Dr.  Buckland  had  offered  to  be  his  guide  in 
this  search  after  glacier  tracks,  as  he  had  for- 
merly been  in  the  hunt  after  fossil  fishes  in 
Great  Britain.  When,  therefore,  the  meeting 
of  the  British  Association  at  Glasgow,  at 
which  they  were  both  present,  was  over,  they 
started  together  for  the  Highlands.  In  a  lec- 
ture delivered  by  Agassiz,  at  his  summer 
school  at  Penikese,  a  few  months  before  his 
death,  he  recurred  to  this  journey  with  the 
enthusiasm  of  a  young  man.  Recalling  the 
scientific  isolation  in  which  he  then  stood,  op- 


GLACIER  HUNT  IN  GREAT  BRITAIN.    307 

posed  as  he  was  to  all  the  prominent  geolo- 
gists of  the  day,  he  said :  "  Among  the  older 
naturalists,  only  one  stood  by  me.  Dr.  Buck- 
land,  Dean  of  Westminster,  who  had  come  to 
Switzerland  at  my  urgent  request  for  the  ex- 
press purpose  of  seeing  my  evidence,  and  who 
had  been  fully  convinced  of  the  ancient  ex- 
tension of  ice  there,  consented  to  accompany 
me  on  my  glacier  hunt  in  Great  Britain.  We 
went  first  to  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  and 
it  is  one  of  the  delightful  recollections  of  my 
life  that  as  we  approached  the  castle  of  the 
Duke  of  Argyll,  standing  in  a  valley  not  un- 
like some  of  the  Swiss  valleys,  I  said  to  Buck- 
land  :  (  Here  we  shall  find  our  first  traces  of 
glaciers ; '  and,  as  the  stage  entered  the  val- 
ley, we  actually  drove  over  an  ancient  termi- 
nal moraine,  which  spanned  the  opening  of 
the  valley."  In  short,  Agassiz  found,  as  he 
had  anticipated,  that  in  the  mountains  of 
Scotland,  Wales,  and  the  north  of  England, 
the  valleys  were  in  many  instances  traversed 
by  terminal  moraines  and  bordered  by  lateral 
ones,  as  in  Switzerland.  Nor  were  any  of 
the  accompanying  phenomena  wanting.  The 
characteristic  traces  left  by  the  ice,  as  well 
known  to  him  now  as  the  track  of  the  game 
to  the  hunter;  the  peculiar  lines,  furrows, 


308  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

and  grooves ;  the  polished  surfaces,  the  roches 
moutonnees ;  the  rocks,  whether  hard  or  soft, 
cut  to  one  level,  as  by  a  rigid  instrument ;  the 
unstratified  drift  and  the  distribution  of  loose 
material  in  relation  to  the  ancient  glacier- 
beds,  —  all  agreed  with  what  he  already  knew 
of  glacial  action.  He  visited  the  famous 
"  roads  of  Glen  Roy  "  in  the  Grampian  Hills, 
where  so  many  geologists  had  broken  a  lance 
in  defense  of  their  theories  of  subsidence  and 
upheaval,  of  ancient  ocean -levels  and  sea- 
beaches,  formed  at  a  time  when  they  believed 
Glen  Roy  and  the  adjoining  valleys  to  have 
been  so  many  fiords  and  estuaries.  To  Agas- 
siz,  these  parallel  terraces  explained  them- 
selves as  the  shores  of  a  glacial  lake,  held 
back  in  its  bed  for  a  time  by  neighboring  gla- 
ciers descending  from  more  sheltered  valleys. 
The  terraces  marked  the  successively  lower 
levels  at  which  the  water  stood,  as  these  bar- 
riers yielded,  and  allowed  its  gradual  escape.1 
The  glacial  action  in  the  whole  neighborhood 
was  such  as  to  leave  no  doubt  in  the  mind  of 

1  For  details,  see  a  paper  by  Agassiz  on  "  The  Glacial  The- 
ory and  its  Recent  Progress  "  in  the  Edinburgh  New  Philo- 
sophical Journal,  October,  1842,  accompanied  by  a  map  of 
the  Glen  Roy  region,  and  also  an  article  entitled  "  Parallel 
Roads  of  Glen  Roy,  in  Scotland,"  in  the  second  volume  of 
Agassiz's  Geological  Sketches. 


GLACIAL  RESULTS  IN  GREAT  BRITAIN.     309 

Agassiz  that  Glen  Roy  and  the  adjoining 
glens,  or  valleys,  had  been  the  drainage-bed 
for  the  many  glaciers  formerly  occupying  the 
western  ranges  of  the  Grampian  Hills.  He 
returned  from  his  tour  satisfied  that  the  moun- 
tainous districts  of  Great  Britain  had  all  been 
centres  of  glacial  distribution,  and  that  the 
drift  material  and  the  erratic  boulders,  scat- 
tered over  the  whole  country,  were  due  to  ex- 
actly the  same  causes  as  the  like  phenomena 
in  Switzerland.  On  the  4th  of  November, 
1840,  he  read  a  paper  before  the  Geological 
Society  of  London,  giving  a  summary  of  the 
scientific  results  of  their  excursion,  followed 
by  one  from  Dr.  Buckland,  who  had  become 
an  ardent  convert  to  his  views.  Apropos  of 
this  meeting,  Dr.  Buckland  writes  in  advance 
as  follows  :  — 

TAYMOUTH  CASTLE,  October  15, 1840. 
.  .  .  Lyell  has  adopted  your  theory  in 
to  to  !  !  !  On  my  showing  him  a  beautiful 
cluster  of  moraines,  within  two  miles  of  his 
father's  house,  he  instantly  accepted  it,  as 
solving  a  host  of  difficulties  that  have  all  his 
life  embarrassed  him.  And  not  these  only, 
but  similar  moraines  and  detritus  of  moraines, 
that  cover  half  of  the  adjoining  counties  are 


310  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

explicable  on  your  theory,  and  he  has  con- 
sented to  my  proposal  that  he  should  imme- 
diately lay  them  all  down  on  a  map  of  the 
county  and  describe  them  in  a  paper  to  be 
read  the  day  after  yours  at  the  Geological  So- 
ciety. I  propose  to  give  in  my  adhesion  by 
reading,  the  same  day  with  yours,  as  a  sequel 
to  your  paper,  a  list  of  localities  where  I  have 
observed  similar  glacial  detritus  in  "Scotland, 
since  I  left  you,  and  in  various  parts  of  Eng- 
land. 

There  are  great  reefs  of  gravel  in  the  lime- 
stone valleys  of  the  central  bog  district  of 
Ireland.  They  have  a  distinct  name,  which  I 
forget.  No  doubt  they  are  moraines  ;  if  you 
have  not,  ere  you  get  this,  seen  one  of  them, 
pray  do  so.1  But  it  will  not  be  worth  while 
to  go  out  of  your  way  to  see  more  than  one ; 
all  the  rest  must  follow  as  a  corollary.  I 
trust  you  will  not  fail  to  be  at  Edinboro'  on 
the  20th,  and  at  Sir  W.  Trevelyan's  on  the 
24th.  .  .  . 

A  letter  of  later  date  in  the  same  month 

1  Agassiz  was  then  staying  at  Florence  Court,  the  seat 
of  the  Earl  of  Enniskillen,  in  County  Fermanagh,  Ireland. 
While  there  he  had  an  opportunity  of  studying  most  interest- 
ing glacial  phenomena. 


LETTER    TO   SIR  PHILIP   EGERTON.     311 

shows  that  Agassiz  felt  his  views  to  be  slowly 
gaining  ground  among  his  English  friends. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ    TO   SIR   PHILIP   EGERTON. 

LONDON,  November  24, 1840. 

...  Our  meeting  on  Wednesday  passed 
off  very  well ;  none  of  my  facts  were  dis- 
turbed, though  Whewell  and  Murchison  at- 
tempted an  opposition ;  but  as  their  objec- 
tions were  far-fetched,  they  did  not  produce 
much  effect.  I  was,  however,  delighted  to 
have  some  appearance  of  serious  opposition, 
because  it  gave  me  a  chance  to  insist  upon 
the  exactness  of  my  observations,  and  upon 
the  want  of  solidity  in  the  objections  brought 
against  them.  Dr.  Buckland  was  truly  elo- 
quent. He  has  now  full  possession  of  this 
subject ;  is,  indeed,  completely  master  of  it. 

•I  am  happy  to  tell  you  that  everything  is 
definitely  arranged  with  Lord  Francis,1  and 
that  I  now  feel  within  myself  a  courage  which 
doubles  my  strength.  I  have  just  written  to 
thank  him.  To-morrow  I  shall  devote  to  the 
fossils  sent  me  by  Lord  Enniskillen,  a  list  of 
which  I  will  forward  to  you.  .  .  . 

1  Apropos  of  the  sale  of  his  original  drawings  of  fossil 
fishes  to  Lord  Francis  Egerton. 


312  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

We  append  here,  a  little  out  of  the  regular 
course,  a  letter  from  Humboldt,  which  shows 
that  he  too  was  beginning  to  look  more  leni- 
ently upon  Agassiz's  glacial  conclusions. 

HUMBOLDT   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN,  August  15,  1840. 

I  am  the  most  guilty  of  mortals,  my  dear 
friend.  There  are  not  three  persons  in  the 
world  whose  remembrance  and  affection  I 
value  more  than  yours,  or  for  whom  I  have  a 
warmer  love  and  admiration,  and  yet  I  allow 
half  the  year  to  pass  without  giving  you  a  sign 
of  life,  without  any  expression  of  my  warm 
gratitude  for  the  magnificent  gifts  I  owe  to 
you.1 

I  am  a  little  like  my  republican  friend  who 
no  longer  answers  any  letters  because  he  does 
not  know  where  to  begin.  I  receive  on  an 
average  fifteen  hundred  letters  a  year.  I 
never  dictate.  I  hold  that  resort  in  horror. 
How  dictate  a  letter  to  a  scholar  for  whom 
one  has  a  real  regard  ?  I  allow  myself  to  be 
drawn  into  answering  the  persons  I  know 
least,  whose  wrath  is  the  most  menacing.  My 
nearer  friends  (and  none  are  more  dear  to  me 

1  Probably  the  plates  of  the  Fresh  -  Water  Fishes  and  other 
illustrated  publications. 


LETTER   FROM  HUMBOLDT.  313 

than  yourself)  suffer  from  my  silence.  I  count 
with  reason  upon  their  indulgence.  The  tone 
of  your  excellent  letters  shows  that  I  am  right. 
You  spoil  me.  Your  letters  continue  to  be 
always  warm  and  affectionate.  I  receive  few 
like  them.  Since  two  thirds  of  the  letters  ad- 
dressed to  me  (partly  copies  of  letters  written 
to  the  king  or  the  ministers)  remain  unan- 
swered, I  am  blamed,  charged  with  being  a 
parvenu  courtier,  an  apostate  from  science. 
This  bitterness  of  individual  claims  does  not 
diminish  my  ardent  desire  to  be  useful.  I  act 
oftener  than  I  answer.  I  know  that  I  like 
to  do  good,  and  this  consciousness  gives  me 
tranquillity  in  spite  of  my  over  burdened  life. 
You  are  happy,  my  dear  Agassiz,  in  the  more 
simple  and  yet  truly  proud  position  which  you 
have  created  for  yourself.  You  ought  to  take 
satisfaction  in  it  as  the  father  of  a  family,  as 
an  illustrious  savant,  as  the  originator  and 
source  of  so  many  new  ideas,  of  so  many 
great  and  noble  conceptions. 

Your  admirable  work  on  the  fossil  fishes 
draws  to  a  close.  The  last  number,  so  rich  in 
discoveries,  and  the  prospectus,  explaining  the 
true  state  of  this  vast  publication,  have  soothed 
all  irritation  regarding  it.  It  is  because  I  am 
so  attached  to  you  that  I  rejoice  in  the  calmer 


314  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

atmosphere  you  have  thus  established  about 
you.  The  approaching  completion  of  the 
fossil  fishes  delivers  me  also  from  the  fear 
that  a  too  great  ardor  might  cause  you  irrep- 
arable losses.  You  have  shown  not  only  what 
a  talent  like  yours  can  accomplish,  but  also 
how  a  noble  courage  can  triumph  over  seem- 
ingly insurmountable  obstacles. 

In  what  words  shall  I  tell  you  how  greatly 
our  admiration  is  increased  by  this  new  work 
of  yours  on  the  Fresh- Water  Fishes  ?  Nothing 
has  appeared  more  admirable,  more  perfect 
in  drawing  and  color.  This  chromatic  lithog- 
raphy resembles  nothing  we  have  had  thus 
far.  What  taste  has  directed  the  publica- 
tion !  Then  the  short  descriptions  accompany- 
ing each  plate  add  singularly  to  the  charm  and 
the  enjoyment  of  this  kind  of  study.  Accept 
my  warm  thanks,  my  dear  friend.  I  not  only 
delivered  your  letter  and  the  copy  with  it  to 
the  king,  but  I  added  a  short  note  on  the 
merit  of  such  an  undertaking.  The  counselor 
of  the  Royal  Cabinet  writes  me  officially  that 
the  king  has  ordered  the  same  number  of 
copies  of  the  Fresh  -Water  Fishes  as%  of  the 
Fossil  Fishes  ;  that  is  to  say,  ten  copies.  M. 
de  Werther  has  already  received  the  order. 
This  is,  to  be  sure,  but  a  slight  help;  still, 


LETTER   FROM  HUMBOLDT.  315 

it  is  all  that  I  have  been  able  to  obtain,  and 
these  few  copies,  with  the  king's  name  as  sub- 
scriber, will  always  be  useful  to  you. 

I  cannot  close  this  letter  without  asking 
your  pardon  for  some  expressions,  too  sharp, 
perhaps,  in  my  former  letters,  about  your  vast 
geological  conceptions.  The  very  exaggera- 
tion of  my  expressions  must  have  shown  you 
how  little  weight  I  attached  to  my  objections. 
.  .  .  My  desire  is  always  to  listen  and  to 
learn.  Taught  from  my  youth  to  believe  that 
the  organization  of  past  times  was  somewhat 
tropical  in  character,  and  startled  therefore  at 
these  glacial  interruptions,  I  cried  "  Heresy  !  " 
at  first.  But  should  we  not  always  listen  to 
a  friendly  voice  like  yours  ?  I  am  interested 
in  whatever  is  printed  on  these  topics ;  so,  if 
you  have  published  anything  at  all  complete 
lately  on  the  ensemble  of  your  geological 
ideas,  have  the  great  kindness  to  send  it  to 
me  through  a  book-seller.  .  .  . 

Shall  I  tell  you  anything  of  my  own  poor 
and  superannuated  works?  The  sixth  volume 
is  wanting  to  my  "  Geography  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century  "  (Examen  Critique).  It  will  appear 
this  summer.  I  am  also  printing  the  second 
volume  of  a  new  work  to  be  entitled  "  Central 
Asia."  It  is  not  a  second  edition  of  "  Asiatic 


316  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

Fragments,"  but  a  new  and  wholly  different 
work.  The  thirty-five  sheets  of  the  last  vol- 
ume are  printed,  but  the  two  volumes  will 
only  be  issued  together.  You  can  judge  of 
the  difficulty  of  printing  at  Paris  and  correct- 
ing proofs  here,  —  at  Poretz  or  at  Toplitz.  I 
am  just  now  beginning  to  print  the  first  num- 
ber of  my  physics  of  the  world,  under  the 
title  of  "  Cosmos  :  "  in  German,  "  Ideen  zur 
einer  physischen  Weltbeschreibung."  It  is 
in  no  sense  a  reproduction  of  the  lectures  I 
gave  here.  The  subject  is  the  same,  but  the 
presentation  does  not  at  all  recall  the  form  of 
a  popular  course.  As  a  book,  it  has  a  some- 
what graver  and  more  elevated  style.  A 
"  spoken  book "  is  always  a  poor  book,  just 
as  lectures  read  are  poor  however  well  pre- 
pared. Published  courses  of  lectures  are  my 
detestation.  Gotta  is  also  printing  a  volume 
of  mine  in  German,  "  Physikalische  geogra- 
phische  Erinnerungen."  Many  unpublished 
things  concerning  the  volcanoes  of  the  Andes, 
about  currents,  etc.  And  all  this  at  the  age 
when  one  begins  to  petrify  !  It  is  very  rash  ! 
May  this  letter  prove  to  you  and  to  Madame 
Agassiz  that  I  am  petrifying  only  at  the  ex- 
tremities, —  the  heart  is  still  warm.  Retain 
for  me  the  affection  which  I  hold  so  dear. 

A.    DE    HUMBOLDT. 


WINTER    VISIT  TO   GLACIERS.          317 

In  the  following  winter,  or,  rather,  in  the 
early  days  of  March,  1841,  Agassiz  visited, 
in  company  with  M.  Desor,  the  glacier  of 
the  Aar  and  that  of  Rosenlaui.  He  wished 
to  examine  the  stakes  planted  the  summer 
before  on  the  glacier  of  the  Aar,  and  to 
compare  the  winter  and  summer  temperature 
within  as  well  as  without  the  mass  of  ice. 
But  his  chief  object  was  to  ascertain  whether 
water  still  flowed  from  beneath  the  glaciers 
during  the  frosts  of  winter.  This  fact  would 
have  a  direct  bearing  upon  the  theory  which 
referred  the  melting  and  movement  of  the 
glaciers  chiefly  to  their  lower  surface,  explain- 
ing them  by  the  central  heat  of  the  earth  as 
their  main  cause.  Satisfied  as  he  was  of  the 
fallacy  of  this  notion,  Agassiz  still  wished  to 
have  the  evidence  of  the  glacier  itself.  The 
journey  was,  of  course,  a  difficult  one  at  such 
a  season,  but  the  weather  was  beautiful,  and 
they  accomplished  it  in  safety,  though  not 
without  much  suffering.  They  found  no 
water  except  the  pure  and  limpid  water  from 
springs  that  never  freeze.  The  glacier  lay 
dead  in  the  grasp  of  winter.  The  results  of 
this  journey,  tables  of  temperature,  etc.,  are 
recorded  in  the  "  Systeme  Glaciaire." 

In  E.  Desor's  "  Sejours  dans  les  Glaciers  " 


318  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

is  found  an  interesting  description  of  the  in- 
cidents of  this  excursion  and  the  appearance 
of  the  glaciers  in  winter.  In  ascending  the 
course  of  the  Aar  they  frequently  crossed  the 
shrunken  river  on  natural  snow  bridges,  and 
approaching  the  Handeck  over  fearfully  steep 
slopes  of  snow  they  had  some  difficulty  in 
finding  the  thread  of  water  which  was  all  that 
remained  of  the  beautiful  summer  cascade. 
On  the  glacier  of  the  Aar  they  found  the 
Hotel  des  Neuchatelois  buried  in  snow,  while 
the  whole  surface  of  the  glacier  as  well  as  the 
surrounding  peaks,  from  base  to  summit,  wore 
the  same  spotless  mantle.  The  Finsteraar- 
horn  alone  stood  out  in  bold  relief,  black 
against  a  white  world,  its  abrupt  slopes  afford- 
ing no  foothold  for  the  snow.  The  scene  was 
far  more  monotonous  than  in  summer.  Cre- 
vasses, with  their  blue  depths  of  ice,  were 
closed ;  the  many-voiced  streams  were  still ; 
the  moraines  and  boulders  were  only  here  and 
there  visible  through  the  universal  shroud. 
The  sky  was  without  a  cloud,  the  air  trans- 
parent, but  the  glitter  of  the  uniform  white 
surface  was  exquisitely  painful  to  the  eyes 
and  skin,  and  the  travelers  were  obliged  to 
wrap  their  heads  in  double  veils.  They  found 
the  glacier  of  Rosenlaui  less  enveloped  in 


SOJOURN  OF  1841  ON  THE  GLACIER.     319 

snow  than  that  of  the  Aar ;  and  though  the 
magnificent  ice-cave,  so  well  known  to  trav- 
elers for  its  azure  tints,  was  inaccessible,  they 
could  look  into  the  vault  and  see  that  the 
habitual  bed  of  the  torrent  was  dry.  The 
journey  was  accomplished  in  a  week  without 
any  untoward  accident. 

In  the  summer  of  1841  Agassiz  made  a 
longer  Alpine  sojourn  than  ever  before.  The 
special  objects  of  the  season's  work  were  the 
internal  structure  of  these  vast  moving  fields 
of  ice,  the  essential  conditions  of  their  origin 
and  continued  existence,  the  action  of  water 
within  them  as  influencing  their  movement, 
and  their  own  agency  in  direct  contact  with 
the  beds  and  walls  of  the  valleys  they  occu- 
pied. The  fact  of  their  former  extension  and 
their  present  oscillations  might  be  considered 
as  established.  It  remained  to  explain  these 
facts  with  reference  to  the  conditions  prevail- 
ing within  the  mass  itself.  In  short,  the  in- 
vestigation was  passing  from  the  domain  of 
geology  to  that  of  physics.  Agassiz,  who  was 
as  he  often  said  of  himself  no  physicist,  was 
the  more  anxious  to  have  the  cooperation  of 
the  ablest  men  in  that  department,  arid  to 
share  with  them  such  facilities  for  observation 
and  such  results  as  he  had  thus  far  accumu- 


320  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

lated.  In  addition  to  his  usual  collaborators, 
M.  Desor  and  M.  Vogt,  he  had,  therefore,  in- 
vited as  his  guest,  during  part  of  the  season, 
the  distinguished  physicist,  Professor  James 
D.  Forbes,  of  Edinburgh,  who  brought  with 
him  his  friend,  Mr.  Heath,  of  Cambridge.1 
M.  Escher  de  la  Linth  took  also  an  active  part 
in  the  work  of  the  later  summer.  To  his 
working  corps  Agassiz  had  added  the  foreman 
of  M.  Kahli,  an  engineer  at  Bienne,  to  whom 
he  had  confided  his  plans  for  the  summer,  and 
who  furnished  him  with  a  skilled  workman  to 
direct  the  boring  operations,  assist  in  measure- 
ments, etc.  The  artist  of  this  year  was  M. 
Jaques  Burkhardt,  a  personal  friend  of  Agas- 
siz, and  his  fellow-student  at  Munich,  where  he 
had  spent  some  time  at  the  school  of  art.  As 
a  draughtsman  he  was  subsequently  associated 
with  Agassiz  in  his  work  at  various  times,  and 
when  they  both  settled  in  America  Mr.  Burk- 
hardt became  a  permanent  member  of  Agas- 
siz's  household,  accompanied  him  on  his  jour- 
neys, and  remained  with  him  in  relations  of 
uninterrupted  and  affectionate  regard  till  his 
own  death  in  1867.  He  was  a  loyal  friend 

1  As  the  impressions  of  Mr.  Forbes  were  only  made  known 
in  connection  with  his  own  later  and  independent  researches 
it  is  unnecessary  to  refer  to  them  here. 


WORK  IN  SUMMER  OF  1841.  321 

and  a  warm-hearted  man,  with  a  thread  of 
humor  running  through  his  dry  good  sense, 
which  made  him  a  very  amusing  and  attractive 
companion. 

As  it  was  necessary,  in  view  of  his  special 
programme  of  work,  to  penetrate  below  the 
surface  of  the  glacier,  and  reach,  if  possible, 
its  point  of  contact  with  the  valley  bottom, 
Agassiz  had  caused  a  larger  boring  appara- 
tus than  had  been  used  before,  to  be  trans- 
ported to  the  old  site  on  the  Aar  glacier. 
The  results  of  these  experiments  are  incorpo- 
rated in  the  "  Systeme  Glaciaire,"  published 
in  1846,  with  twenty-four  folio  plates  and 
two  maps.  They  were  of  the  highest  inter- 
est with  reference  to  the  internal  structure 
and  temperature  of  the  ice  and  the  penetra- 
bility of  its  mass,  pervious  throughout,  as  it 
proved,  to  air  and  water.  On  one  occasion 
the  boring-rod,  having  been  driven  to  a  depth 
of  one  hundred  and  ten  feet,  dropped  sud- 
denly two  feet  lower,  showing  that  it  had 
passed  through  an  open  space  hidden  in  the 
depth  of  the  ice.  The  release  of  air-bubbles 
at  the  same  time  gave  evidence  that  this  gla- 
cial cave,  so  suddenly  broken  in  upon,  was 
not  hermetically  sealed  to  atmospheric  influ- 
ences from  without. 

VOL.   I.  21 


322  LOUIS  AGASSTZ. 

Agassiz  was  not  satisfied  with  the  report 
of  his  instruments  from  these  unknown  re- 
gions. He  determined  to  be  lowered  into  one 
of  the  so-called  wells  in  the  glacier,  and  thus 
to  visit  its  interior  in  person.  For  this  pur- 
pose he  was  obliged  to  turn  aside  the  stream 
which  flowed  into  the  well  into  a  new  bed 
which  he  caused  to  be  dug  for  it.  This  done, 
he  had  a  strong  tripod  erected  over  the  open- 
ing, and,  seated  upon  a  board  firmly  attached 
by  ropes,  he  was  then  let  down  into  the  well, 
his  friend  Escher  lying  flat  on  the  edge  of 
the  precipice,  to  direct  the  descent  and  listen 
for  any  warning  cry.  Agassiz  especially  de- 
sired to  ascertain  how  far  the  laminated  or 
ribboned  structure  of  the  ice  (the  so-called 
blue  bands)  penetrated  the  mass  of  the  gla- 
cier. This  feature  of  the  glacier  had  been 
observed  and  described  by  M.  Guyot  (see 
p.  292),  but  Mr.  Forbes  had  called  especial  at- 
tention to  it,  as  in  his  belief  connected  with 
the  internal  conditions  of  the  glacier.  It  was 
agreed,  as  Agassiz  bade  farewell  to  his  friends 
on  this  curious  voyage  of  discovery,  that  he 
should  be  allowed  to  descend  until  he  called 
out  that  they  were  to  lift  him.  He  was  low- 
ered successfully  and  without  accident  to  a 
depth  of  eighty  feet.  There  he  encountered 


DESCENT  INTO  THE  GLACIER.        323 

an  unforeseen  difficulty  in  a  wall  of  ice  which 
divided  the  well  into  two  compartments.  He 
tried  first  the  larger  one,  but  finding  it  split 
again  into  several  narrow  tunnels,  he  caused 
himself  to  be  raised  sufficiently  to  enter  the 
smaller,  and  again  proceeded  on  his  downward 
course  without  meeting  any  obstacle.  Wholly 
engrossed  in  watching  the  blue  bands,  still 
visible  in  the  glittering  walls  of  ice,  he  was 
only  aroused  to  the  presence  of  approaching 
danger  by  the  sudden  plunge  of  his  feet  into 
water.  His  first  shout  of  distress  was  misun- 
derstood, and  his  friends  lowered  him  into  the 
ice-cold  gulf  instead  of  raising  him.  The  sec- 
ond cry  was  effectual,  and  he  was  drawn  up, 
though  not  without  great  difficulty,  from  a 
depth  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet. 
The  most  serious  peril  of  the  ascent  was 
caused  by  the  huge  stalactites  of  ice,  between 
the  points  of  which  he  had  to  steer  his  way. 
Any  one  of  them,  if  detached  by  the  friction 
of  the  rope,  might  have  caused  his  death.  He 
afterward  said :  "  Had  I  known  all  its  dangers, 
perhaps  I  should  not  have  started  on  such  an 
adventure.  Certainly,  unless  induced  by  some 
powerful  scientific  motive,  I  should  not  advise 
any  one  to  follow  my  example."  On  this  per- 
ilous journey  he  traced  the  laminated  structure 


324  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

to  a  depth  of  eighty  feet,  and  even  beyond, 
though  with  less  distinctness. 

The  summer  closed  with  their  famous  as- 
cent of  the  Jungfrau.  The  party  consisted 
of  twelve  persons :  Agassiz,  Desor,  Forbes, 
Heath,  and  two  travelers  who  had  begged  to 
join  them,  —  M.  de  Chatelier,  of  Nantes,  and 
M.  de  Pury,  of  Neuchatel,  a  former  pupil  of 
Agassiz.  The  other  six  were  guides ;  four 
beside  their  old  and  tried  friends,  Jacob  Leu- 
thold  and  Johann  Wahren.  They  left  the  hos- 
pice of  the  Grimsel  on  the  27th  of  August, 
at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning.  Crossing  the 
Col  of  the  Oberaar  they  descended  to  the 
snowy  plateau  which  feeds  the  Viescher  gla- 
cier. In  this  grand  amphitheatre,  walled  in 
by  the  peaks  of  the  Viescherhorner,  they 
rested  for  their  midday  meal.  In  crossing 
these  fields  of  snow,  while  walking  with  per- 
fect security  upon  what  seemed  a  solid  mass, 
they  observed  certain  window-like  openings  in 
the  snow.  Stooping  to  examine  one  of  them, 
they  looked  into  an  immense  open  space, 
filled  with  soft  blue  light.  They  were,  in  fact, 
walking  on  a  hollow  crust,  and  the  small  win- 
dow was,  as  they  afterward  found,  opposite  a 
large  crevasse  on  the  other  side  of  this  ice- 
cavern,  through  which  the  light  entered,  flood- 


DELA Y  AT  THE  START.  325 

ing  the  whole  vault  and  receiving  from  its  icy 
walls  its  exquisite  reflected  color.1 

Once  across  the  fields  of  snow  and  neve,  a 
fatiguing  walk  of  five  hours  brought  them  to 
the  chalets  of  Meril,2  where  they  expected  to 
sleep.  The  night  which  should  have  prepared 
them  for  the  fatigue  of  the  next  day  was, 
however,  disturbed  by  an  untoward  accident. 
The  ladder  left  by  Jacob  Leuthold  when  last 
here  with  Hugi  in  1832,  nine  years  before, 
and  upon  which  he  depended,  had  been  taken 
away  by  a  peasant  of  Viesch.  Two  messen- 
gers were  sent  in  the  course  of  the  night  to 
the  village  to  demand  its  restoration.  The 
first  returned  unsuccessful ;  the  second  was 
the  bearer  of  such  threats  of  summary  pun- 
ishment from  the  whole  party  that  he  carried 
his  point,  and  appeared  at  last  with  the  re- 
covered treasure  on  his  back.  They  had,  in 
the  mean  while,  lost  two  hours.  They  should 
have  been  on  their  road  at  three  o'clock;  it 
was  now  five.  Jacob  warned  them  therefore 
that  they  must  make  all  speed,  and  that  any 
one  who  felt  himself  unequal  to  a  forced 

1  The  effect  is  admirably  described   by  M.   Desor  in  his 
account  of  this  excursion,  Sejours  dans  les  Glaciers,  p.  367. 

2  Sometimes  Moril,  but  I  have  retained  the  spelling  of  M. 

.  —  E.  C.  A. 


326  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

inarch  should  stay  behind.  No  one  responded 
to  his  suggestion,  and  they  were  presently  on 
the  road. 

Passing  Lake  Meril,  with  its  miniature  ice- 
bergs, they  reached  the  glacier  of  the  Aletsch 
and  its  snow-fields,  where  the  real  difficulties 
and  dangers  of  the  ascent  were  to  begin.  In 
this  great  semicircular  space,  inclosed  by  the 
Jungfrau,  the  Monch,  and  the  lesser  peaks  of 
this  mountain  group,  lies  the  Aletsch  reser- 
voir of  snow  or  neVe.  As  this  spot  presented 
a  natural  pause  between  the  laborious  ascent 
already  accomplished  and  the  immense  decliv- 
ities which  lay  before  them  yet  to  be  climbed, 
they  named  it  Le  Repos,  and  halted  there  for 
a  short  rest.  Here  they  left  also  every  need- 
less incumbrance,  taking  only  a  little  bread 
and  wine,  in  case  of  exhaustion,  some  meteor- 
ological instruments,  and  the  inevitable  lad- 
der, axe,  and  ropes  of  the  Alpine  climber. 
On  their  left,  to  the  west  of  the  amphitheatre, 
a  vast  passage  opened  between  the  Jungfrau 
and  the  Kranzberg,  and  in  this  could  be  dis- 
tinguished a  series  of  terraces,  one  above  the 
other.  The  story  is  the  usual  one,  of  more 
or  less  steep  slopes,  where  they  sank  in  the 
softer  snow  or  cut  their  steps  in  the  icy  sur- 
faces ;  of  open  crevasses,  crossed  by  the  lad- 


ASCENT  OF  THE  JUNGFRAU.  327 

der,  or  the  more  dangerous  ones,  masked  by 
snow,  over  which  they  trod  cautiously,  tied 
together  by  the  rope.  But  there  was  nothing 
to  appall  the  experienced  mountaineer  with 
firm  foot  and  a  steady  head,  until  they  reached 
a  height  where  the  summit  of  the  Jungfrau 
detached  itself  in  apparently  inaccessible  iso- 
lation from  all  beneath  or  around  it.  To  all 
but  the  guides  their  farther  advance  seemed 
blocked  by  a  chaos  of  precipices,  either  of 
snow  and  ice  or  of  rock.  Leuthold  remained 
however  quietly  confident,  telling  them  he 
clearly  saw  the  course  he  meant  to  follow. 
It  began  by  an  open  gulf  of  unknown  depth, 
though  not  too  wide  to  be  spanned  by  their 
ladder  twenty-three  feet  in  length.  On  the 
other  side  of  this  crevasse,  and  immediately 
above  it,  rose  an  abrupt  wall  of  icy  snow. 
Up  this  wall  Leuthold  and  another  guide  led 
the  way,  cutting  steps  as  they  went.  When 
half  way  up  they  lowered  the  rope,  holding 
one  end,  while  their  companions  fastened  the 
other  to  the  ladder,  so  that  it  served  them  as 
a  kind  or  hand-rail,  by  which  to  follow.  At 
the  top  they  found  themselves  on  a  terrace, 
beyond  which  a  far  more  moderate  slope  led  to 
the  Col  of  Roththal,  overlooking  the  Aletsch 
valley  on  one  side,  the  Roththal  on  the  other. 


328  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

From  this  point  the  ascent  was  more  and 
more  steep  and  very  slow,  as  every  step  had 
to  be  cut.  Their  difficulties  were  increased, 
also,  by  a  mist  which  gathered  around  them, 
and  by  the  intense  cold.  Leuthold  kept  the 
party  near  the  border  of  the  ridge,  because 
there  the  ice  yielded  more  readily  to  the 
stroke  of  the  axe ;  but  it  put  their  steadiness 
of  nerve  to  the  greatest  test,  by  keeping  the 
precipice  constantly  in  view,  except  when  hid- 
den by  the  fog.  Indeed,  they  could  drive 
their  alpenstocks  through  the  overhanging 
rim  of  frozen  snow,  and  look  sheer  down 
through  the  hole  thus  made  to  the  amphithe- 
atre below.  One  of  the  guides  left  them,  un- 
able longer  to  endure  the  sight  of  these  prec- 
ipices so  close  at  hand.  As  they  neared  their 
goal  they  feared  lest  the  mist  might,  at  the 
last,  deprive  them  of  the  culminating  moment 
for  which  they  had  braved  such  dangers.  But 
suddenly,  as  if  touched  by  their  perseverance, 
says  M.  Desor,  the  veil  of  fog  lifted,  and  the 
summit  of  the  Jungfrau,  in  its  final  solitude, 
rose  before  them.  There  was  still  a  certain 
distance  to  be  passed  before  they  actually 
reached  the  base  of  the  extreme  peak.  Here 
they  paused,  riot  without  a  certain  hesitation, 
for  though  the  summit  lay  but  a  few  feet 


PORTRAIT   OF  JACOB    LEUTHOLD. 
Front  a  portrait  by  J.  Burkhardt. 


ON  THE  SUMMIT.  329 

above  them,  they  were  separated  from  it  by  a 
sharp  and  seemingly  inaccessible  ridge.  Even 
Agassiz,  who  was  not  easily  discouraged,  said, 
as  he  looked  up  at  this  highest  point  of  the 
fortress  they  had  scaled  :  "  We  can  never 
reach  it."  For  all  answer,  Jacob  Leuthold, 
their  intrepid  guide,  flinging  down  every- 
thing which  could  embarrass  his  movements, 
stretched  his  alpenstock  over  the  ridge  as  a 
grappling  pole,  and,  trampling  the  snow  as  he 
went,  so  as  to  flatten  his  giddy  path  for  those 
who  were  to  follow,  was  in  a  moment  on  the 
top.  To  so  steep  an  apex  does  this  famous 
peak  narrow,  that  but  one  person  can  stand 
on  the  summit  at  a  time,  nor  was  even  this 
possible  till  the  snow  was  beaten  down.  Re- 
turning on  his  steps,  Leuthold,  whose  quiet, 
unflinching  audacity  of  success  was  conta- 
gious, assisted  each  one  to  stand  for  a  few 
moments  where  he  had  stood.  The  fog,  the 
effect  of  which  they  had  so  much  feared,  now 
lent  something  to  the  beauty  of  the  view  from 
this  sublime  foothold.  Masses  of  vapor  rolled 
up  from  the  Roththal  on  the  southwest,  but, 
instead  of  advancing  to  envelop  them,  paused 
at  a  little  distance  arrested  by  some  current 
from  the  plain.  The  temperature  being  be- 
low freezing  point,  the  drops  of  moisture  in 


330  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

this  wall  of  vapor  were  congealed  into  ice- 
crystals,  which  glittered  like  gold  in  the  sun- 
light and  gave  back  all  the  colors  of  the  rain- 
bow. 

When  all  the  party  were  once  more  assem- 
bled at  the  base  of  the  peak,  Jacob,  whose 
resources  never  failed,  served  to  each  one  a 
little  wine,  and  they  rested  on  the  snow  before 
beginning  their  perilous  descent.  Of  living 
things  they  saw  only  a  hawk,  poised  in  the 
air  above  their  heads ;  of  plants,  a  few  li- 
chens, where  the  surface  of  the  rock  was  ex- 
posed. It  was  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
before  they  started  on  their  downward  path, 
turning  their  faces  to  the  icy  slope,  and  feel- 
ing for  the  steps  behind  them,  some  seven 
hundred  in  all,  which  had  been  cut  in  ascend- 
ing. In  about  an  hour  they  reached  the 
Col  of  the  Roththal,  where  the  greatest  diffi- 
culties of  the  ascent  had  begun  and  the 
greatest  dangers  of  the  descent  were  over. 
So  elated  were  they  by  the  success  of  the  day, 
and  so  regardless  of  lesser  perils  after  those 
they  had  passed  through,  that  they  were  now 
inclined  to  hurry  forward  incautiously.  Ja- 
cob, prudent  when  others  were  rash,  as  he 
was  bold  when  others  were  intimidated,  con- 
stantly called  them  to  order  with  his :  "  Hub- 


RETURN  TO   THE  HOSPICE.  331 

schle  !  nur  immer  hiibschle  !  "     ("  Gently  !  al- 
ways gently  !  ") 

At  six  o'clock  they  were  once  more  at  Le 
Repos,  having  retraced  their  steps  in  two 
hours  over  a  distance  which  had  cost  them 
six  in  going.  Evening  was  now  falling,  but 
daylight  was  replaced  by  moonlight,  and  when 
they  reached  the  glacier  its  whole  surface 
shone  with  a  soft  silvery  lustre,  broken  here 
and  there  by  the  gigantic  shadow  of  some 
neighboring  mountain  thrown  black  across 
it.  At  about  nine  o'clock,  just  as  they  had 
passed  that  part  of  the  glacier  which  was,  on 
account  of  the  frequent  crevasses,  the  most 
dangerous,  they  were  cheered  by  the  sound 
of  a  distant  jodel.  It  was  the  call  of  a  peas- 
ant who  had  been  charged  to  meet  them  with 
provisions,  at  a  certain  distance  above  Lake 
Meril,  in  case  they  should  be  overcome  by 
hunger  and  fatigue.  The  most  acceptable 
thing  he  brought  was  his  great  wooden 
bucket,  filled  with  fresh  milk.  The  picture 
of  the  party,  as  they  stood  around  him  in  the 
moonlight,  dipping  eagerly  into  his  bucket, 
and  drinking  in  turn  until  they  had  exhausted 
the  supply,  is  so  vivid,  that  one  shares  their 
good  spirits  and  their  enjoyment.  Thus  re- 
freshed, they  started  on  the  last  stage  of 


332  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

their  journey,  three  leagues  of  which  yet  lay 
before  them,  and  at  half-past  eleven  arrived 
at  the  chalets  of  Me'ril,  which  they  had  left  at 
dawn. 

On  the  morrow  the  party  broke  up,  and 
Agassiz  and  Desor,  accompanied  by  their 
friend,  M.  Escher  de  la  Linth,  returned  to 
the  Grimsel,  and  after  a  day's  rest  there  re- 
paired once  more  to  the  Hotel  des  Neuchate- 
lois.  They  remained  on  the  glacier  until  the 
5th  of  September,  spending  these  few  last 
days  in  completing  their  measurements,  and  in 
planting  the  lines  of  stakes  across  the  glacier, 
to  serve  as  a  means  of  determining  its  rate 
of  movement  during  the  year,  and  the  com- 
parative rapidity  of  that  movement  at  certain 
fixed  points.  Thus  concluded  one  of  the  most 
eventful  seasons  Agassiz  and  his  companions 
had  yet  passed  upon  the  Alps.1 

1  Though  quoting  his  exact  language  only  in  certain  in- 
stances, the  account  of  this  and  other  Alpine  ascensions  de- 
scribed above  has  been  based  upon  M.  E.  Desor's  Sejours 
dans  les  Glaciers.  His  very  spirited  narratives,  added  to  my 
own  recollections  of  what  I  had  heard  from  Mr.  Agassiz 
himself  on  the  same  subject,  have  given  me  my  material.  — 
E.  C.  A. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

1842-1843:  ^T.  35-36. 

Zoological  Work  uninterrupted  by  Glacial  Researches.— 
Various  Publications.  —  "  Nomenclator  Zoologicus."  — 
"  Bibliographia  Zoologize  et  Geologise."  —  Correspondence 
with  English  Naturalists.  —  Correspondence  with  Hum- 
boldt.  —  Glacial  Campaign  of  1842.  —  Correspondence 
with  Prince  de  Canino  concerning  Journey  to  United  States. 
—  Fossil  Fishes  from  the  Old  Red  Sandstone. — Glacial 
Campaign  of  1843.  —  Death  of  Leuthold,  the  Guide. 

ALTHOUGH  his  glacier  work  was  now  so 
prominent  a  feature  of  Agassiz's  scientific 
life,  his  zoological  studies,  especially  his  ich- 
thyological  researches,  and  more  especially  his 
work  on  fossil  fishes,  went  on  with  little  inter- 
ruption. His  publications  upon  Fossil  Mol- 
lusks,1  upon  Tertiary  Shells,2  upon  Living  and 
Fossil  Echinoderms,3  with  many  smaller  mon- 
ographs on  special  subjects,  were  undertaken 

1  Etudes  Critiques  sur  les  Mollusques  Fossi7es,4nos.,  4°,  with 
100  plates. 

2  Iconographie   des    Coquilles    Tertiaires  repute'es  identiques 
sur  les  vivanSy  1  no.,  4°,  14  plates. 

8  Monographic  d'Echinodermes  vivans  et  fossiles,  4  nos.,  4°, 
with  37  plates. 


334  LOUIS  AGASsrz. 

and  completed  during  the  most  active  period 
of  his  glacial  investigations.  More  surprising 
is  it  to  find  him,  while  pursuing  new  lines  of 
investigation  with  passionate  enthusiasm,  en- 
gaged at  the  same  time  upon  works  seemingly 
so  dry  and  tedious  as  his  "  Nomenclator  Zo- 
ologieus,"  and  his  "  Bibliographia  Zoologies 
et  Geologic." 

The  former  work,  a  large  quarto  volume 
with  an  Index,1  comprised  an  enumeration  of 
all  the  genera  of  the  animal  kingdom,  with 
the  etymology  of  their  names,  the  names  of 
those  who  had  first  proposed  them,  and  the 
date  of  their  publication.  He  obtained  the 
cooperation  of  other  naturalists,  submitting 
each  class  as  far  as  possible  for  revision  to  the 
leaders  in  their  respective  departments. 

In  his  letter  of  presentation  to  the  library 
of  the  Neuchatel  Academy,  addressed  to 
M.  le  Baron  de  Chambrier,  President  of  the 
Academic  Council,  Agassiz  thus  describes  the 
Nomenclator. 

..."  Have  the  kindness  to  accept  for  the 
library  of  the  Academy  the  fifth  number  of 
a  work  upon  the  sources  of  zoological  criti- 
cism, the  publication  of  which  I  have  just 
begun.  It  is  a  work  of  patience,  demanding 

1  The  Index  was  also  published  separately  as  an  octavo. 


NOMENCLATOR  AND  BIBLIOGRAPHIA.    335 

long  and  laborious  researches.  I  had  con- 
ceived the  plan  in  the  first  years  of  my  stud- 
ies, and  since  then  have  never  lost  sight  of  it. 
I  venture  to  believe  it  will  be  a  barrier  against 
the  Babel  of  confusion  which  tends  to  over- 
whelm the  domain  of  zoological  synonymy. 
My  book  will  be  called  '  Nomenclator  Zoolog- 


icus.s 


The  Bibliographia  (4  volumes,  8°)  was  in 
some  measure  a  complement  of  the  Nomen- 
clator, and  contained  a  list  of  all  the  authors 
named  in  the  latter,  with  notices  of  their 
works.  It  appeared  somewhat  later,  and  was 
published  by  the  Ray  Society  in  England,  in 
1848,  after  Agassiz  had  left  Europe  for  the 
United  States.  The  material  for  this  work 
also  had  been  growing  upon  his  hands  for 
years.  Feeling  more  and  more  the  impor- 
tance of  such  a  register  as  a  guide  for  stu- 
dents, he  appealed  to  naturalists  in  ah1  parts 
of  Europe  for  information  upon  the  scientific 
bibliography  of  their  respective  countries,  and 
at  last  succeeded  in  cataloguing,  with  such 
completeness  as  was  possible,  all  known  works 
and  all  scattered  memoirs  on  zoology  and 
geology.  Unable  to  publish  this  costly  but 
unremunerative  material,  he  was  delighted  to 


336  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

give  it  up  to  the  Kay  Society.  The  first 
three  volumes  were  edited  with  corrections 
and  additions  by  Mr.  H.  E.  Strickland,  who 
died  before  the  appearance  of  the  fourth  vol- 
ume, which  was  finally  completed  under  the 
care  of  his  father-in-law,  Sir  William  Jar- 
dine. 

The  ability,  so  eminently  possessed  by  Agas- 
siz  of  dealing  with  a  number  of  subjects  at 
once,  was  due  to  no  superficial  versatility. 
To  him  his  work  had  but  one  meaning.  It 
was  never  disconnected  in  his  thought,  and 
therefore  he  turned  from  his  glaciers  to  his 
fossils,  and  from  the  fossil  to  the  living  world, 
with  the  feeling  that  he  was  always  dealing 
with  kindred  problems,  bound  together  by  the 
same  laws.  Nowhere  is  this  better  seen  than 
in  the  records  of  the  scientific  society  of  Neu- 
chatel,  the  society  he  helped  to  found  in  the 
first  months  of  his  professorship,  and  to  which 
he  always  remained  strongly  attached,  being 
a  constant  attendant  at  its  sessions  from  1833 
to  1846.  Here  we  find  him  from  month  to 
month,  with  philosophic  breadth  of  thought, 
treating  of  animals  in  their  widest  relations,  or 
describing  minute  structural  details  with  the 
skill  of  a  specialist.  He  presents  organized 
beings  in  their  geological  succession,  in  their 


VARIETY  OF  RESEARCH.  337 

geographical  distribution,  in  their  embryonic 
development.  He  reviews  and  remodels  laws 
of  classification.  Sometimes  he  illustrates  the 
fossil  by  the  living  world,  sometimes  he  finds 
the  key  to  present  phenomena  in  the  remote 
past.  He  reconstructs  the  history  of  the  gla- 
cial period,  and  points  to  its  final  chapter  in 
the  nearest  Alpine  valleys,  connecting  these 
facts  again  with  like  phenomena  in  distant 
parts  of  the  globe.  But  however  wide  his 
range  and  however  various  his  topics,  under 
his  touch  they  are  all  akin,  all  coordinate 
parts  of  a  whole  which  he  strives  to  under- 
stand in  its  entirety.  A  few  extracts  from 
his  correspondence  will  show  him  in  his  dif- 
ferent lines  of  research  at  this  time. 

The  following1  letter  is  from  Edward  Forbes, 

O  ' 

one  of  the  earliest  explorers  of  the  deep-sea 
fauna.  Agassiz  had  asked  him  for  some  help 
in  his  work  upon  echinoderms. 

EDWARD    FORBES   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

21  LOTHIAN  ST.,  EDINBURGH,  February  13,  1841. 
...  A  letter  from  you  was  to  me  one  of 
the  greatest  of  pleasures,  and  with  great  de- 
light (though,  I  fear,  imperfectly)  I  have  exe- 
cuted the  commission  you  gave  me.    It  should 

have   been  done   much   sooner  had   not   the 
VOL.  L  22 


338  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

storms  been  so  bad  in  the  sea  near  this  that, 
until  three  days  ago,  I  was  not  able  to  procure 
a  living  sea-urchin  from  which  to  make  the 
drawings  required,  .  .  .  You  have  made  all 
the  geologists  glacier-mad  here,  and  they  are 
turning  Great  Britain  into  an  ice-house.  Some 
amusing  and  very  absurd  attempts  at  opposi- 
tion to  your  views  have  been  made  by  one  or 
two  pseudo  -  geologists ;  among  others,  poor 
,  who  has  read  a  paper  at  the  Royal  So- 
ciety here,  maintaining  that  all  the  appear- 
ances you  refer  to  glaciers  were  caused  by 
blocks  of  ice  which  floated  this  way  in  the  Del- 
uge !  and  that  the  fossils  of  the  pleistocene 
strata  were  mollusks,  etc.,  which,  climbing 
upon  the  ice-blocks,  were  carried  to  warmer 
seas  against  their  will ! !  To  my  mind,  one  of 
the  best  proofs  of  the  truth  of  your  views  lies 
in  the  decidedly  arctic  character  of  the  pleis- 
tocene fauna,  which  must  be  referred  to  the 
glacier  time,  and  by  such  reference  is  easily 
understood.  I  mean  during  the  summer  to 
collect  data  on  that  point,  in  order  to  present 
a  mass  of  geological  proofs  of  your  theory. 

Dr.  Traill  tells  me  you  are  proposing  to 
visit  England  again  during  the  coming  sum- 
mer. If  you  do,  I  hope  we  shall  meet,  when 
I  shall  have  many  things  to  show  you,  which 


LETTER  FROM  SIR  R.  MURCHISON.    339 

time  did  not  permit  when  you  were  here.  I 
look  anxiously  for  the  forth-coming  number 
of  your  history  of  the  Echinodermata.  .  .  . 

FROM   SIR   RODERICK   MURCHISON. 

June  13,  1842. 

.  .  .  Your  letters  have  given  me  great  pleas- 
ure :  first,  in  assuring  me  that  your  zeal  in 
ichthyology  is  undiminished,  and  that  you  are 
about  to  give  such  striking  proofs  of  it  to  the 
British  Association ;  and  next  that  you  still 
pursue  with  enthusiasm  your  admirable  re- 
searches upon  the  glaciers.  I  should  be 
charmed  to  put  myself  under  your  guidance 
for  a  walk  on  the  glaciers  of  the  Aar,  but  I 
hardly  dare  promise  it  yet.  .  .  .  Even  were  I 
to  make  every  haste,  I  doubt  if  it  be  possible 
to  reach  your  Swiss  meeting  in  time.  It  is 
just  possible  that  I  may  find  you  in  your  gla- 
cial cantonment  after  your  return,  but  even 
this  will  depend  upon  circumstances  over  which 
I  have  no  control. 

I  send  this  letter  to  you  by  my  friend,  Ad- 
miral Sir  Charles  Malcolm,  who  passes  through 
Neuchatel  on  his  way  to  Geneva.  Accom- 
panying it  is  a  copy  of  my  last  discourse, 
which  I  request  you  to  accept  and  to  read  all 
parts  of  it.  You  will  see  that  I  have  grappled 


340  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

honestly  and  according  to  my  own  faith  with 
your  ice,  but  have  never  lost  sight  of  your 
great  merit.  My  concluding  paragraph  will 
convince  you  and  all  your  friends  that  if  I  am 
wrong  it  is  not  from  any  preconceived  no- 
tions, but  only  because  I  judge  from  what  you 
will  call  incomplete  evidence.  Your  "  Venez 
voir !  "  still  sounds  in  my  ears.  .  .  . 

Murchison  remained  for  many  years  an  op- 
ponent of  the  glacial  theory  in  its  larger  appli- 
cation. In  the  discourse  to  which  the  above 
letter  makes  allusion  (Address  at  the  Anni- 
versary Meeting  of  the  Geological  Society  of 
London,  1842  x)  is  this  passage :  "  Once  grant 
to  Agassiz  that  his  deepest  valleys  of  Switzer- 
land, such  as  the  enormous  Lake  of  Geneva, 
were  formerly  filled  with  snow  and  ice,  and  I 
see  no  stopping  place.  From  that  hypothesis 
you  may  proceed  to  fill  the  Baltic  and  the 
northern  seas,  cover  southern  England  and  half 
of  Germany  and  Russia  with  similar  icy  sheets, 
on  the  surfaces  of  which  all  the  northern  boul- 
ders might  have  been  shot  off.  So  long  as  the 
greater  number  of  the  practical  geologists  of 
Europe  are  opposed  to  the  wide  extension  of 

1  Extract  from  Report  in  vol.  33  of  the  Edinburgh  New 
Philosophical  Journal. 


MURCHISON  ON  THE  GLACIAL  THEORY.    341 

a  terrestrial  glacial  theory,  there  can  be  little 
risk  that  such  a  doctrine  should  take  too  deep 
a  hold  of  the  mind.  .  .  .  The  existence  of 
glaciers  in  Scotland  and  England  (I  mean  in 
the  Alpine  sense)  is  not,  at  all  events,  estab- 
lished to  the  satisfaction  of  what  I  believe  to 
be  by  far  the  greater  number  of  British  geolo- 
gists." 

Twenty  years  later,  with  rare  candor,  Mur- 
chison  wrote  to  Agassiz  as  follows ;  by  its  con- 
nection, though  not  by  its  date,  the  extract  is 
in  place  here :  "  I  send  you  my  last  anniver- 
sary address,  which  I  wrote  entirely  myself ; 
and  I  beg  you  to  believe  that  in  the  part  of  it 
that  refers  to  the  glacial  period,  and  to  Europe 
as  it  was  geographically,  I  have  had  the  sin- 
cerest  pleasure  in  avowing  that  I  was  wrong 
in  opposing  as  I  did  your  grand  and  original 
idea  of  my  native  mountains.  Yes  !  I  am  now 
convinced  that  glaciers  did  descend  from  the 
mountains  to  the  plains  as  they  do  now  in 
Greenland." 

During  the  summer  of  1842,  at  about  the 
same  date  with  Murchison's  letter  disclaiming 
the  glacial  theory,  Agassiz  received,  on  the 
other  hand,  a  new  evidence,  and  one  which 
must  have  given  him  especial  pleasure,  of  the 
favorable  impression  his  views  were  making  in 
some 'quarters  in  England. 


342  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 


FROM    DR.    BUCKLAND. 

OXFORD,  July  22, 1842. 

.  .  .  You  will,  I  am  sure,  rejoice  with  me 
at  the  adhesion  of  C.  Darwin  to  the  doctrine 
of  ancient  glaciers  in  North  Wales,  of  which  I 
send  you  a  copy,  and  which  was  communicated 
to  me  by  Dr.  Tritten,  during  the  late  meeting 
at  Manchester,  in  time  to  be  quoted  by  me 
versus  Murchison,  when  he  was  proclaiming 
the  exclusive  agency  of  floating  icebergs  in 
drifting  erratic  blocks  and  making  scratched 
and  polished  surfaces.  It  has  raised  the  gla- 
cial theory  fifty  per  cent.,  as  far  as  relates  to 
glaciers  descending  inclined  valleys ;  but  Hop- 
kins and  the  Cantabrigians  are  still  as  obsti- 
nate as  ever  against  allowing  the  power  of  ex- 
pansion to  move  ice  along  great  distances  on 
horizontal  surfaces.  .  .  . 

The  following  is  the  letter  referred  to  above. 

C.    DARWIN   TO   DR.    TRITTEN. 

Yesterday  (and  the  previous  days)  I  had 
some  most  interesting  work  in  examining  the 
marks  left  by  extinct  glaciers.  I  assure  you, 
an  extinct  volcano  could  hardly  leave  more 
evident  traces  of  its  activity  and  vast  powers. 


DARWIN   ON  ANCIENT  GLACIERS.    343 

I  found  one  with  the  lateral  moraine  quite 
perfect,  which  Dr.  Buckland  did  not  see.  Pray 
if  you  have  any  communication  with  Dr.  Buck- 
land  give  him  my  warmest  thanks  for  having 
guided  me,  through  the  published  abstract  of 
his  memoir,  to  scenes,  and  made  me  under- 
stand them,  which  have  given  me  more  de- 
light than  I  almost  remember  to  have  experi- 
enced since  I  first  saw  an  extinct  crater.  The 
valley  about  here  and  the  site  of  the  inn  at 
which  I  am  now  writing  must  once  have  been 
covered  by  at  least  800  or  1,000  feet  in  thick- 
ness of  solid  ice  !  Eleven  years  ago  I  spent  a 
whole  day  in  the  valley  where  yesterday  every- 
thing but  the  ice  of  the  glaciers  was  palpably 
clear  to  me,  and  I  then  saw  nothing  but  plain 
water  and  bare  rock.  These  glaciers  have 
been  grand  agencies.  I  am  the  more  pleased 
with  what  I  have  seen  in  North  Wales,  as  it 
convinces  me  that  my  view  of  the  distribution 
of  the  boulders  on  the  South  American  plains, 
as  effected  by  floating  ice,  is  correct.  I  am 
also  more  convinced  that  the  valleys  of  Glen 
Roy  and  the  neighboring  parts  of  Scotland 
have  been  occupied  by  arms  of  the  sea,  and 
very  likely  (for  in  that  point  I  cannot,  of 
course,  doubt  Agassiz  and  Buckland)  by  gla- 
ciers also. 


344  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

It  continued  to  be  a  grief  to  Agassiz  that 
Humboldt,  the  oldest  of  all  his  scientific 
friends,  and  the  one  whose  opinion  he  most 
reverenced,  still  remained  incredulous.  Hum- 
boldt's  letters  show  that  Agassiz  did  not  will- 
ingly renounce  the  hope  of  making  him  a  con- 
vert. Agassiz's  own  letters  to  Humboldt  are 
missing  from  this  time  onward.  Overwhelmed 
with  occupation,  and  more  at  his  ease  in  his 
relations  with  the  older  scientific  men,  he  had 
ceased  to  make  the  rough  drafts  in  which  his 
earlier  correspondence  is  recorded. 

HUMBOLDT   TO   AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN,  March  2,  1842. 

.  .  .  When  one  has  been  so  long  separated, 
even  accidentally,  from  a  friend  as  I  have 
been  from  you,  my  dear  Agassiz,  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  find  beginning  or  end  to  a  letter. 
The  kindly  remembrance  which  you  send  me 
is  evidence  that  my  long  silence  has  not 
seemed  strange  to  you.  ...  It  would  be 
wasting  words  to  tell  you  how  I  have  been 
prevented,  by  the  distractions  of  my  life,  al- 
ways increasing  with  old  age,  from  acknowl- 
edging the  admirable  things  received  from 
you,  —  upon  living  and  fossil  fishes,  echino- 
derms,  and  glaciers.  My  admiration  of  your 


HUMBOLDTS  VIEWS  ON  ICE  PERIOD.     345 

boundless  activity,  of  your  beautiful  intellect- 
ual life,  increases  with  every  year.  This  ad- 
miration for  your  work  and  your  bold  excur- 
sions is  based  upon  the  most  careful  reading 
of  all  the  views  and  investigations,  for  which 
I  have  to  thank  you.  This  very  week  I  have 
read  with  great  satisfaction  your  truly  philo- 
sophical address,  and  your  long  treatise  in 
Cotta's  fourth  "  Jahresschrift."  Even  L.  von 
Buch  confessed  that  the  first  half  of  your 
treatise,  the  living  presentation  of  the  succes- 
sion of  organized  beings,  was  full  of  truth, 
sagacity,  and  novelty. 

I  in  no  way  reproach  you,  my  dear  friend, 
for  the  urgent  desire  expressed  in  all  your 
letters,  that  your  oldest  friends  should  accept 
your  comprehensive  geological  view  of  your 
ice-period.  It  is  very  noble  and  natural  to 
wish  that  what  has  impressed  us  as  true 
should  also  be  recognized  by  those  we  love. 
...  I  believe  I  have  read  and  compared  all 
that  has  been  written  for  and  against  the  ice- 
period,  and  also  upon  the  transportation  of 
boulders,  whether  pushed  along  or  carried  by 
floods  or  gliding  over  slopes.  My  own  opin- 
ion, as  you  know,  can  have  no  weight  or  au- 
thority, since  I  have  not  myself  seen  the 
most  decisive  points.  Indeed  I  am,  perhaps 


346  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

wrongly,  inclined  to  look  upon  all  geological 
theories  as  having  their  being  in  a  mythical 
region,  in  which,  with  the  progress  of  phys- 
ics, the  phantasms  are  modified  century  by 
century.  But  the  "  elephants  caught  in  the 
ice,"  and  Cuvier's  "  instantaneous  change  of 
climate,"  seem  to  me  no  more  intelligible  to- 
day than  when  I  wrote  my  Asiatic  fragments. 
According  to  all  that  we  know  of  the  de- 
crease of  heat  in  the  earth,  I  cannot  under- 
stand such  a  change  of  temperature  in  a 
space  of  time  which  does  not  also  allow  for 
the  decaying  of  flesh.  I  understand  much 
better  how  wolves,  hares,  and  dogs,  should 
they  fall  to-day  into  clefts  of  the  frozen  re- 
gions of  Northern  Siberia  (and  the  so-called 
"  elephant-ice  "  is  in  plain  prose  only  porphy- 
ritic  drift  mixed  with  ice-crystals,  true  drift 
material),  might  retain  their  flesh  and  mus- 
cles. .  .  .  But  I  am  only  a  grumbling  re- 
bellious subject  in  your  kingdom.  ...  Do 
not  be  vexed  with  a  friend  who  is  more  than 
ever  impressed  with  your  services  to  geology, 
your  philosophical  views  of  nature,  your  pro- 
found knowledge  of  organized  beings.  .  .  . 

With    old    attachment    and    the   warmest 
friendship,  your 

A.  DE    HUMBOLDT. 


AGASSI Z    TO  SIR   PHILIP  EGERTON.        347 

In  the  same  strain  is  this  extract  from  an- 
other letter  of  Humboldt's,  written  two  or 
three  months  later. 

.  .  .  " <  Grace  from  on  high/  says  Madame 
de  Sevigne',  (  comes  slowly.'  I  especially  de- 
sire it  for  the  glacial  period  and  for  that  fatal 
cap  of  ice  which  frightens  me,  child  of  the 
equator  that  I  am.  My  heresy,  of  little  im- 
portance, since  I  have  seen  nothing,  does  not, 
I  assure  you,  my  dear  Agassiz,  diminish  my 
ardent  desire  that  all  your  observations  should 
be  published.  ...  I  rejoice  in  the  good  news 
you  give  me  of  the  fishes.  I  should  pain 
you  did  I  add  that  this  work  of  yours,  by  the 
light  it  has  shed  on  the  organic  development 
of  animals,  makes  the  true  foundation  of  your 
glory."  .  .  . 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO  SIR   PHILIP  EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL,  June,  1842. 

...  I  am  hard  at  work  on  the  fishes  of  the 
"  Old  Red,"  and  will  send  you  at  Manchester  a 
part  at  least  of  the  plates,  with  a  general  sum- 
mary of  the  species  of  that  formation.  I  aim 
to  finish  the  work  with  such  care  that  it  shall 
mark  a  sensible  advance  in  ichthyology.  I 
hope  it  will  satisfy  you.  .  .  .  You  ask  me  how 
I  intend  to  finish  my  Fossil  Fishes  ?  As  f ol- 


348  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

lows :  As  soon  as  the  number  on  the  species 
of  the  "  Old  Red  "  is  finished,  I  shall  complete 
the  general  outline  of  the  work  as  I  did  with 
volume  4,  in  order  that  the  arrangement  and 
character  of  all  the  families  in  the  four  orders 
may  be  studied  in  their  zoological  affinities, 
with  their  genera  and  principal  species.  But 
as  this  outline  can  no  longer  contain  the  in- 
numerable species  now  known  to  me,  I  take 
up  monographically  the  species  from  the  dif- 
ferent geological  formations  in  the  order  of 
the  deposits,  and  publish  as  many  supple- 
ments as  there  are  great  formations  rich  in 
fossil  fishes.  I  shall  limit  myself  to  the  species 
described  in  the  body  of  the  work,  merely 
adding  the  description  of  the  new  species 
in  each  deposit,  and  such  additions  as  I  may 
have  to  make  for  those  already  known.  In 
this  way,  those  who  wish  to  study  fossil  fishes 
from  the  zoological  stand-point  can  turn  to 
the  work  in  the  original  form,  while  those 
who  wish  to  study  them  in  their  geological 
relations  can  confine  themselves  to  the  sup- 
plements. By  means  of  double  registers  at 
the  end  of  each  volume,  these  two  distinct 
parts  of  the  work  will  be  again  united  as  a 
complete  whole.  This  is  the  only  plan  I  have 
been  able  to  devise  by  which  I  could  publish 


NEW  HOME  ON  THE   GLACIER.         349 

in  succession  all  my  materials  without  burden- 
ing my  first  subscribers,  who  will  thus  be  free 
to  accept  the  supplements  or  not,  as  they  pre- 
fer. Should  you  have  occasion  to  mention 
this  arrangement  to  the  friends  of  fossil  ich- 
thyology, pray  do  so  ;  it  seems  to  me  for  the 
interest  of  the  matter  that  it  should  be  known. 
...  I  propose  to  resume  with  new  zeal  my 
researches  upon  the  fossil  fishes  as  soon  as  I 
return  from  an  excursion  I  wish  to  make  in 
July  and  August  to  the  glacier  of  the  Aar, 
where  I  hope,  by  a  last  visit  this  year,  to  con- 
clude my  labors  on  this  subject.  You  will  be 
glad  to  learn  that  the  beautiful  barometer  you 
gave  me  has  been  my  faithful  companion  in 
the  Alps.  ...  I  have  the  pleasure  to  tell  you 
that  the  King  of  Prussia  has  made  me  a  hand- 
some gift  of  nearly  £200  for  the  continuance 
of  my  glacial  work.  I  feel,  therefore,  the 
greater  certainty  of  completing  what  remains 
for  me  to  do.  ... 

The  campaign  of  1842  opened  on  the  4th 
of  July.  The  boulder  had  ceased  to  be  a 
safe  shelter,  and  was  replaced  by  a  rough 
frame  cabin  covered  with  canvas.  If  the 
party  had  some  regrets  in  leaving  their  pic- 
turesque hut  beneath  the  rock,  the  greater 


350  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

comfort  of  the  new  abode  consoled  them.  It 
had  several  divisions.  A  sleeping  -  place  for 
the  guides  and  workmen  was  partitioned  off 
from  a  middle  room  occupied  by  Agassiz  and 
his  friends,  while  the  front  space  served  as 
dining-room,  sitting-room,  and  laboratory. 
This  outer  apartment  boasted  a  table  and  one 
or  two  benches ;  even  a  couple  of  chairs  were 
kept  as  seats  of  honor  for  occasional  guests. 
A  shelf  against  the  wall  and  a  few  pegs  ac- 
commodated books,  instruments,  coats,  etc., 
and  a  plank  floor,  on  which  to  spread  their 
blankets  at  night,  was  a  good  exchange  for 
the  frozen  surface  of  the  glacier.1 

1  In  bidding  farewell  to  the  boulder  which  had  been  the 
first  "  Hotel  des  Neuchatelois  "  we  may  add  a  word  of  its 
farther  fortunes.  It  had  begun  to  split  in  1841,  and  was 
completely  rent  asunder  in  1844,  after  which  frost  and  rain 
completed  its  dismemberment.  Strange  to  say,  during  the 
last  summer  (1884)  certain  fragments  of  the  mass  have  been 
found,  inscribed  with  the  names  of  some  of  the  party ;  one  of 
the  blocks  bearing  beside  names,  the  mark  No.  2.  The  ac- 
count says  :  "  The  middle  stone,  the  one  numbered  2,  was  at 
the  intersecting  point  of  two  lines  drawn  from  the  Pavilion 
Dollfuss  to  the  Scheuchzerhorn  on  the  one  part,  and  from 
the  Rothhorn  to  the  Thierberg  on  the  other."  According  to 
the  measurements  taken  by  Agassiz,  the  Hotel  des  Neuchate- 
lois  in  1840  stood  at  797  metres  from  the  promontory  of 
Abschwung.  We  are  thus  enabled,  by  referring  to  the  large 
glacier  map  of  Wild  and  Stengel,  to  compare  the  present 
with  the  then  position  of  the  stone,  and  thereby  ascertain  the 
progress  of  the  glacier  since  the  time  in  question.  Thus  the 


SUMMER    OF  1842   ON  THE   GLACIER.        351 

Mr.  Wild,  an  engineer  of  known  ability, 
was  now  a  member  of  their  party,  as  a  topo- 
graphical survey  was  to  be  one  of  the  chief 
objects  of  the  summer's  work.  The  results  of 
this  survey,  which  was  continued  during  two 
summers,  are  embodied  in  the  map  accom- 
panying Agassiz's  "  Systeme  Glaciaire."  Ex- 
periments upon  the  extent  and  connection  of 
the  net-work  of  capillary  fissures  that  admit- 
ted water  into  the  interior  of  the  glaciers,  oc- 
cupied Agassiz's  own  attention  during  a  great 
part  of  the  summer.  In  order  to  ascertain 
this,  colored  liquids  were  introduced  into  the 
glacier  by  means  of  boring,  and  it  was  found 
that  they  threaded  their  way  through  the  mass 
of  the  ice  and  reappeared  at  lower  points  with 
astonishing  rapidity.  A  gallery  was  cut  at  a 
depth  of  ten  metres  below  the  surface,  through 
a  wall  of  ice  intervening  between  two  cre- 
vasses. The  colored  liquid  poured  into  a  hole 
above  soon  appeared  on  the  ceiling  of  the 
gallery.  The  experimenters  were  surprised  to 
find  that  at  night  the  same  result  was  obtained, 
and  that  the  liquid  penetrated  from  the  surface 
to  the  roof  of  the  gallery  even  more  quickly 

boulder  still  contributes  something  toward  the  sequel  of  the 
work  begun  by  those  who  once  found  shelter  beneath  it.  — 
E.  C.  A. 


352  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

than  during  the  day.  This  was  explained  by 
the  fact  that  the  fissures  were  then  free  from 
any  moisture  arising  from  surface  melting,  so 
that  the  passage  through  them  was  unim- 
peded.1 

The  comparative  rate  of  advance  in  the 
different  parts  of  the  glacier  was  ascertained 
this  summer  with  greater  precision  than  before. 
The  rows  of  stakes  planted  in  a  straight  line 
across  the  glacier  by  Agassiz  and  Escher  de 
la  Linth,  in  the  previous  September,  now  de- 
scribed a  crescent  with  the  curve  turned  to- 
ward the  terminus  of  the  glacier,  showing, 
contrary  to  the  expectation  of  Agassiz,  that 
the  centre  moved  faster  than  the  sides.  The 

1  Distrust  has  been  thrown  upon  these  results  by  the  fail- 
ure of  more  recent  attempts  to  repeat  the  same  experiments. 
In  reference  to  this,  Agassiz  himself  says  :  "  The  infiltra- 
tion has  been  denied  in  consequence  of  the  failure  of  some 
experiments  in  which  an  attempt  was  made  to  introduce 
colored  fluids  into  the  glacier.  To  this  I  can  only  answer 
that  I  succeeded  completely  myself  in  the  self -same  experi- 
ment which  a  later  investigator  found  impracticable,  and  that 
I  see  no  reason  why  the  failure  of  the  latter  attempt  should 
cast  a  doubt  upon  the  success  of  the  former.  The  explana- 
tion of  the  difference  in  the  result  may  perhaps  be  found  in 
the  fact  that  as  a  sponge  gorged  with  water  can  admit  no 
more  fluid  than  it  already  contains,  so  the  glacier,  under  cer- 
tain circumstances,  and  especially  at  noonday  in  summer,  may 
be  so  soaked  with  water  that  all  attempts  to  pour  colored 
fluids  into  it  would  necessarily  fail." —  See  Geological  Sketches, 
by  L.  Agassiz,  p.  236. 


SECOND    STATION    ON    THE   AAR   GLACIER. 


MODE  OF  FORMATION  OF  CREVASSES.      353 

correspondence  of  the  curve  in  the  stratifica- 
tion with  that  of  the  line  of  stakes  confirmed 
this  result.  The  study  of  the  stratification 
of  the  snow  was  a  marked  feature  of  the  sea- 
son's work,  and  Agassiz  believed,  as  will  be 
seen  by  a  later  letter,  that  he  had  established 
this  fact  of  glacial  structure  beyond  a  doubt. 

The  origin  and  mode  of  formation  of  the 
crevasses  also  especially  occupied  the  observ- 
ers. On  the  7th  of  August,  Agassiz  had  an 
opportunity  of  watching  this  phenomenon  in 
its  initiation.  Attracted  to  a  certain  spot  on 
the  glacier  by  a  commotion  among  his  work- 
men, he  found  them  alarmed  at  the  singu- 
lar noises  and  movements  in  the  ice.  "  I 
heard,"  he  says,  "  at  a  little  distance  a  sound 
like  the  simultaneous  discharge  of  fire-arms ; 
hurrying  in  the  direction  of  the  noise,  it  was 
repeated  under  my  feet  with  a  movement  like 
that  of  a  slight  earthquake ;  the  ground 
seemed  to  shift  and  give  way  under  me,  but 
now  the  sound  differed  from  the  preceding, 
and  resembled  a  crumbling  of  rocks,  without, 
however,  any  perceptible  sinking  of  the  sur- 
face. The  glacier  actually  trembled,  never- 
theless ;  for  a  block  of  granite  three  feet  in 
diameter,  perched  on  a  pedestal  two  feet  high, 
suddenly  fell  down.  At  the  same  instant  a 

VOL.  I.  23 


354  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

crack  opened  between  my  feet  and  ran  rap- 
idly across  the  glacier  in  a  straight  line." 
On  this  occasion  Agassiz  saw  three  crevasses 
formed  in  an  hour  and  a  half,  and  heard  oth- 
ers opening  at  a  greater  distance  from  him. 
He  counted  eight  new  fissures  in  a  space  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet.  The  phe- 
nomenon continued  throughout  the  evening, 
and  recurred,  though  with  less  frequency,  dur- 
ing the  night.  The  cracks  were  narrow,  the 
largest  an  inch  and  a  half  in  width,  and  their 
great  depth  was  proved  by  the  rapidity  with 
which  they  drained  any  standing  water  in 
their  immediate  vicinity.  "A  boring-hole/' 
says  Agassiz,  "  one  hundred  and  thirty  feet 
deep  and  six  inches  in  diameter,  full  of  water, 
was  completely  emptied  in  a  few  minutes, 
showing  that  these  narrow  cracks  penetrated 
to  great  depths." 

The  summer's  work  included  observations 
also  on  the  comparative  movement  of  the  gla- 
cier during  the  day  and  night,  on  the  surface 
waste  of  the  mass,  its  reparation,  on  the  neVe 
and  snow  of  the  upper  regions,  on  the  merid- 
ian holes,  the  sun-dials  of  the  glaciers,  as  they 

1  Extract  from  a  letter  of  Louis  Agassiz  to  M.  Arago  dated 
from  the  H6tel  des  Neuchatelois,  Glacier  of  the  Aar,  August 
7,1842. 


CONTEMPLATES   GOING   TO  AMERICA.      355 

have  been  called.1  On  the  whole,  the  most 
important  result  of  the  campaign  was  the 
topographical  survey  of  the  glacier,  recorded 
in  the  map  published  in  Agassiz's  second 
work  on  the  glacier. 

At  about  this  time  there  begin  to  be  occa- 
sional references  in  his  correspondence  to  a 
journey  of  exploration  in  the  United  States. 
Especially  was  this  plan  in  frequent  discus- 
sion between  him  and  Charles  Bonaparte, 
Prince  of  Canino,  a  naturalist  almost  as  ardent 
as  himself,  with  whom  he  had  long  been  in 
intimate  scientific  correspondence.  In  April, 
1842,  the  prince  writes  him  :  "  I  indulge  my- 
self in  dreaming  of  the  journey  to  America  in 
which  you  have  promised  to  accompany  me. 

1  "  Here  and  there  on  the  glacier  there  are  patches  of  loose 
material,  dust,  sand,  or  gravel,  accumulated  by  diminutive 
water-rills  and  small  enough  to  become  heated  during  the 
day.  They  will,  of  course,  be  warmed  first  on  their  eastern 
side,  then  still  more  powerfully  on  their  southern  side,  and, 
in  the  afternoon,  with  less  force  again,  on  their  western  side, 
while  the  northern  side  will  remain  comparatively  cool. 
Thus  around  more  than  half  of  their  circumference  they 
melt  the  ice  in  a  semicircle,  and  the  glacier  is  covered  with 
little  crescent-shaped  troughs  of  this  description,  with  a 
steep  wall  on  one  side  and  a  shallow  one  on  the  other,  and  a 
little  heap  of  loose  materials  in  the  bottom.  They  are  the 
sun-dials  of  the  glacier,  recording  the  hour  by  the  advance 
of  the  sun's  rays  upon  them."  —  Geological  Sketches,  by  L. 
Agassiz,  p.  293. 


356  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

What  a  relaxation !  and  at  the  same  time 
what  an  amount  of  useful  work  !  "  Again,  a 
few  months  later,  "  You  must  keep  me  well 
advised  of  your  plans,  and  I,  in  my  turn,  will 
try  so  to  arrange  my  affairs  as  to  find  my- 
self free  in  the  spring  of  1844  for  a  voyage, 
the  chief  object  of  which  will  be  to  show  my 
oldest  son  the  country  where  he  was  born, 
and  where  man  may  develop  free  of  shackles. 
The  mere  anticipation  of  this  journey  is  de- 
lightful to  me,  since  I  shall  have  you  at  my 
side,  and  may  thus  feel  sure  that  it  will  make 
an  epoch  in  science."  This  letter  is  answered 
from  the  glacier ;  the  first  part  refers  to  the 
Nomenclator,  in  regard  to  which  he  often  con- 
sulted the  prince. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO   THE   PRINCE   OF   CANTNO. 

GLACIER  OF  THE  AAR,  September  1,  1842. 
...  I  thank  you  most  sincerely  for  the 
pains  you  have  so  kindly  taken  with  my  proof, 
and  for  pointing  out  the  faults  and  omissions 
you  have  noticed  in  my  register  of  birds.  I 
made  the  corrections  at  once,  and  have  taken 
the  liberty  of  mentioning  on  the  cover  of  this 
number  the  share  you  have  consented  to  take 
in  my  Nomenclator.  I  shall  try  to  do  better 
and  better  in  the  successive  classes,  but  you 


AGASSIZ   TO   THE  PRINCE  OF   CANINO.    357 

well  know  the  impossibility  of  avoiding1  grave 
errors  in  such  a  work,  and  that  they  can  be 
wholly  weeded  out  only  in  a  second  and  third 
edition.  I  should  have  written  sooner  in  an- 
swer to  your  last,  had  not  your  letter  reached 
me  on  the  Glacier  of  the  Aar,  where  I  have 
been  since  the  beginning  of  July,  following 
up  observations,  the  results  of  which  become 
every  day  more  important  and  more  convincing. 
The  most  striking  fact,  one  which  I  think  I 
have  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  doubt,  is  the 
primitive  stratification  of  the  neve,  or  fields 
of  snow,  —  stratified  from  the  higher  regions 
across  the  whole  course  of  the  glacier  to  its 
lower  extremity.  I  have  prepared  a  general 
map,  with  transverse  sections,  showing  how 
the  layers  lift  themselves  on  the  borders  of 
the  glacier  and  also  at  their  junction,  where 
two  glaciers  meet  at  the  outlet  of  adjoining 
valleys ;  and  how,  also,  the  waving  lines  formed 
by  the  layers  on  the  surface  change  to  sharper 
concentric  curves  with  a  marked  axis,  as  the 
glacier  descends  to  lower  levels.  For  a  full 
demonstration  of  the  matter,  I  ought  to  send 
you  my  map  and  plans,  of  which  I  have,  as 
yet,  no  duplicates  ;  but  the  fact  is  incontest- 
able, and  you  will  oblige  me  by  announcing 
it  in  the  geological  section  at  Padua.  M. 


358  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Charpentier,  who  is  going  to  your  meeting, 
will  contest  it,  but  you  can  tell  him  from  me 
that  it  is  as  evident  as  the  stratification  of  the 
Nep tunic  rocks.  To  see  and  understand  it 
fully,  however,  one  must  stand  well  above  the 
glacier,  so  as  to  command  the  surface  as  a 
whole  in  one  view.  I  would  add  that  I  am 
not  now  alluding  to  the  blue  and  white  bands 
in  the  ice  of  which  I  spoke  to  you  last  year  ; 
this  is  a  quite  distinct  phenomenon. 

I  wish  I  could  accept  your  kind  invitation, 
but  until  I  have  gone  to  the  bottom  of  the 
glacier  question  and  terminated  my  "  Fossil 
Fishes,"  I  do  not  venture  to  move.  It  is  no 
light  task  to  finish  all  this  before  our  long 
journey,  to  which  I  look  forward,  as  it  draws 
nearer,  with  a  constantly  increasing  interest. 
I  am  very  sorry  not  to  join  you  at  Florence. 
It  would  have  been  a  great  pleasure  for  me  to 
visit  the  collections  of  northern  Italy  in  your 
company.  ...  I  write  you  on  a  snowy  day, 
which  keeps  me  a  prisoner  in  my  tent ;  it  is 
so  cold  that  I  can  hardly  hold  my  pen,  and 
the  water  froze  at  my  bedside  last  night. 
The  greatest  privation  is,  however,  the  lack  of 
fruit  and  vegetables.  Hardly  a  potato  once 
a  fortnight,  but  always  and  every  day,  morn- 
ing and  night,  mutton,  everlasting  mutton, 


FOSSIL  FISHES  AGAIN.  359 

and  rice  soup.  As  early  as  the  end  of  July 
we  were  caught  for  three  days  by  the  snow  ;  I 
fear  I  shall  be  forced  to  break  up  our  encamp- 
ment next  week  without  having  finished  my 
work.  What  a  contrast  between  this  life  and 
that  of  the  plain  !  I  am  afraid  my  letter  may 
be  long  on  the  road  before  reaching  the  mail, 
and  I  pause  here  that  I  may  not  miss  the 
chance  of  forwarding  it  by  a  man  who  has 
just  arrived  with  provisions  and  is  about  to 
return  to  the  hospice  of  the  Grimsel,  where 
some  trustworthy  guide  will  undertake  to  de- 
liver it  at  the  first  post-office. 

No  sooner  is  Agassiz  returned  from  the 
glacier  than  we  meet  him  again  in  the  do- 
main of  his  fossil  fishes. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO   SIB   PHILIP   EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL,  December  15,  1842. 
...  In  the  last  few  months  I  have  made 
an  important  step  in  the  identification  of  fos- 
sil fishes.  The  happy  idea  occurred  to  me  of 
applying  the  microscope  to  the  study  of  frag- 
ments of  their  bones,  especially  those  of  the 
head,  and  I  have  found  in  their  structure 
modifications  as  remarkable  and  as  numerous 
as  those  which  Mr.  Owen  discovered  in  the 


360  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

structure  of  teeth.  Here  there  is  a  vast  new 
field  to  explore.  I  have  already  applied  it  to 
the  identification  of  the  fossil  fishes  in  the 
Old  Red  of  Russia  sent  me  for  that  purpose 
by  Mr.  Murchison.  You  will  find  more  ample 
details  about  it  in  my  report  to  him.  I  con- 
gratulate myself  doubly  on  the  results ;  first, 
because  of  their  great  importance  in  paleon- 
tology, and  also  because  they  will  draw  more 
closely  my  relations  with  Mr.  Owen,  whom  I 
always  rejoice  to  meet  on  the  same  path  with 
myself,  and  whom  I  believe  incapable  of  jeal- 
ousy in  such  matters.  .  .  .  The  only  point 
indeed,  on  which  I  think  I  may  have  a  little 
friendly  difference  with  him,  is  concerning  the 
genus  Labyrinthodon,  which  I  am  firmly  re- 
solved, on  proofs  that  seem  to  me  conclusive,  to 
claim  for  the  class  of  fishes.1  As  soon  as  I  have 
time  I  will  write  to  Mr.  Owen,  but  this  need 
not  prevent  you  from  speaking  to  him  on  the 
subject  if  you  have  an  early  opportunity  to  do 
so.  I  am  now  exclusively  occupied  with  the 
fossil  fishes,  which  at  any  cost  I  wish  to  finish 
this  winter.  .  .  .  Before  even  returning  to 
my  glacier  work,  I  will  finish  my  monograph 
of  the  Old  Red,  so  that  you  may  present  it  at 

1  On  seeing  Owen's  evidence  some  years  later,  Agassiz  at 
once  acknowledged  himself  mistaken  on  this  point. 


VARIOUS  PUBLICATIONS  COMPLETED.    361 

the  Cork  meeting,  which  it  will  be  impossible 
for  me  to  attend.  ...  I  am  infinitely  grate- 
ful to  you  and  Lord  Enniskillen  for  your  will- 
ingness to  trust  your  Sheppy  fishes  to  me ;  I 
shall  thus  be  prepared  in  advance  for  a  strict 
determination  of  these  fossils.  Having  them 
for  some  time  before  my  eyes,  I  shall  be- 
come familiar  with  all  the  details.  When  I 
know  them  thoroughly,  and  have  compared 
them  with  the  collections  of  skeletons  in  the 
Museums  of  Paris,  of  Leyden,  of  Berlin,  and 
of  Halle,  I  will  then  come  to  England  to  see 
what  there  may  be  in  other  collections  which 
I  cannot  have  at  my  disposal  here. 

The  winter  of  1843,  apart  from  his  duties 
as  professor,  was  devoted  to  the  completion  of 
the  various  zoological  works  on  which  he  was 
engaged,  and  to  the  revision  of  materials  he 
had  brought  back  from  the  glacier.  His  hab- 
its with  reference  to  physical  exercise  were 
very  irregular.  He  passed  at  once  from  the 
life  of  the  mountaineer  to  that  of  the  closet 
student.  After  weeks  spent  on  the  snow  and 
ice  of  the  glacier,  constantly  on  foot  and  in 
the  open  air,  he  would  shut  himself  up  for  a 
still  longer  time  in  his  laboratory,  motionless 
for  hours  at  his  microscope  by  day,  and  writ- 


362  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

ing  far  into  the  night,  rarely  leaving  his 
work  till  long  after  midnight.  He  was  also 
forced  at  this  time  to  press  forward  his  pub- 
lications in  the  hope  that  he  might  have  some 
return  for  the  sums  he  had  expended  upon 
them.  This  was  indeed  a  very  anxious  pe- 
riod of  his  life.  He  could  never  be  brought 
to  believe  that  purely  intellectual  aims  were 
not  also  financially  sound,  and  his  lithographic 
establishment,  his  glacier  work,  and  his  costly 
researches  in  zoology  had  proved  far  beyond 
his  means.  The  prophecies  of  his  old  friend 
Humboldt  were  coming  true.  He  was  entan- 
gled in  obligations,  and  crushed  under  the 
weight  of  his  own  undertakings.  He  began 
to  doubt  the  possibility  of  carrying  out  his 
plan  of  a  scientific  journey  to  the  United 
States. 

AGASSIZ   TO   THE   PRINCE    OF   CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL,  April,  1843. 

...  I  have  worked  like  a  slave  all  winter 
to  finish  my  fossil  fishes ;  you  will  presently 
receive  my  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  numbers, 
forwarded  two  days  since,  with  more  than 
forty  pages  of  text,  containing  many  new  ob- 
servations. I  shall  allow  myself  no  interrup- 
tion until  this  work  is  finished,  hoping  there- 


AMERICAN  JOURNEY  IMPOSSIBLE.      363 

by  to  obtain  a  little  freedom,  for  if  my  posi- 
tion here  is  not  changed  I  shall  be  forced  to 
seek  the  means  of  existence  elsewhere.  Mean- 
time, extravagant  projects  present  themselves, 
as  is  apt  to  be  the  case  when  one  is  in  diffi- 
culties. That  of  accompanying  you  to  the 
United  States  was  so  tempting,  that  I  am  bit- 
terly disappointed  to  think  that  its  execution 
becomes  impossible  in  my  present  circum- 
stances. All  my  projects  for  further  publi- 
cations must  also  be  adjourned,  or  perhaps 
renounced.  .  .  .  Possibly,  when  my  work  on 
the  fossil  fishes  is  completed,  the  sale  of  some 
additional  copies  may  help  me  to  rise  again. 
And  yet  I  have  not  much  hope  of  this,  since 
all  the  attempts  of  my  friends  to  obtain  sub- 
scriptions for  me  in  France  and  Russia  have 
failed  :  because  the  French  government  takes 
no  interest  in  what  is  done  out  of  Paris ;  and 
in  Russia  such  researches,  having  little  direct 
utility,  are  looked  upon  with  indifference.  Do 
you  think  any  position  would  be  open  to  me 
in  the  United  States,  where  I  might  earn 
enough  to  enable  me  to  continue  the  publica- 
tion of  my  unhappy  books,  which  never  pay 
their  way  because  they  do  not  meet  the  wants 
of  the  world  ?  . 


364  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

In  the  following  July  we  find  him  again 
upon  the  glacier.  But  the  campaign  of  1843 
opened  sadly  for  the  glacial  party.  Arriving 
at  Meiringen  they  heard  that  Jacob  Leuthold 
was  ill  and  would  probably  be  unable  to  ac- 
company them.  They  went  to  his  house,  and 
found  him,  indeed,  the  ghost  of  his  former 
self,  apparently  in  a  rapid  decline.  Neverthe- 
less, he  welcomed  them  gladly  to  his  humble 
home,  and  would  have  kept  them  for  some  re- 
freshment. Fearing  to  fatigue  him,  however, 
they  stayed  but  a  few  moments.  As  they 
left,  one  of  the  party  pointed  to  the  moun- 
tains, adding  a  hope  that  he  might  soon  join 
them.  His  eyes  filled  with  tears  ;  it  was  his 
only  answer,  and  he  died  three  days  later.  He 
was  but  thirty-seven  years  of  age,  and  at  that 
time  the  most  intrepid  and  the  most  intelli- 
gent of  the  Oberland  guides.  His  death  was 
felt  as  a  personal  grief  by  the  band  of  work- 
ers whose  steps  he  had  for  years  guided  over 
the  most  difficult  Alpine  passes. 

The  summer's  work  continued  and  com- 
pleted that  of  the  last  season.  On  leaving 
the  glacier  the  year  before  they  had  marked 
a  net-work  of  loose  boulders,  such  as  travel 
with  the  ice,  and  also  a  number  of  fixed  points 
in  the  valley  walls,  comparing  and  registering 


GLACIAL    WORK   FOR  1842.  365 

their  distance  from  each  other.  They  had 
also  sunk  a  line  of  stakes  across  the  glacier. 
The  change  in  the  relative  position  of  the  two 
sets  of  signals  and  the  curve  in  their  line  of 
stakes  gave  them,  self-recorded,  as  it  were, 
the  rate  of  advance  of  the  glacier  as  a  whole, 
and  also  the  comparative  rate  of  progression 
in  its  different  parts.  Great  pains  was  also 
taken  during  the  summer  to  measure  the  ad- 
vance in  every  twenty-four  hours,  as  well  as 
to  compare  the  diurnal  with  the  nocturnal 
movement,  and  to  ascertain  the  amount  of 
surface  waste.  The  season  was  an  unfavor- 
able one,  beginning  so  late  and  continuing  so 
cold  that  the  period  of  work  was  shortened. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

1843-1846:  JET.  36-39. 

Completion  of  Fossil  Fishes.  —  Followed  by  Fossil  Fishes  of 
the  Old  Red  Sandstone.  —  Review  of  the  Later  Work.  — 
Identification  of  Fishes  by  the  Skull.  —  Renewed  Corre- 
spondence with  Prince  Canino  about  Journey  to  the  United 
States.  —  Change  of  Plan  owing  to  the  Interest  of  the 
King  of  Prussia  in  the  Expedition.  —  Correspondence  be- 
tween Professor  Sedgwick  and  Agassiz  on  Development 
Theory.— Final  Scientific  Work  in  Neuchatel  and  Paris. 
—  Publication  of  "Systeme  Glaciaire." — Short  Stay  in 
England.  —  Sails  for  United  States. 

IN  1843  the  "  Recherches  sur  les  Poissons 
Fossiles  "  was  completed,  and  fast  upon  its  foot- 
steps, in  1844,  followed  the  author's  "Mon- 
ograph on  the  Fossil  Fishes  of  the  Old  Red 
Sandstone,  or  the  Devonian  System  of  Great 
Britain  and  Russia,"  a  large  quarto  volume  of 
text,  accompanied  by  forty-one  plates.  Noth- 
ing in  his  paleontological  studies  ever  inter- 
ested Agassiz  more  than  this  curious  fauna 
of  the  Old  Red,  so  strange  in  its  combinations 
that  even  well-informed  naturalists  had  attrib- 
uted its  fossil  remains  to  various  classes  of 
the  animal  kingdom  in  turn,  and,  indeed,  long 


FISHES  OF  OLD  RED  SANDSTONE.    367 

remained  in  doubt  as  to  their  true  nature. 
Agassiz  says  himself  in  his  Preface :  "  I  can 
never  forget  the  impression  produced  upon  me 
by  the  sight  of  these  creatures,  furnished  with 
appendages  resembling  wings,  yet  belonging, 
as  I  had  satisfied  myself,  to  the  class  of  fishes. 
Here  was  a  type  entirely  new  to  us,  about  to 
reenter  (for  the  first  time  since  it  had  ceased 
to  exist)  the  series  of  beings ;  nor  could  any- 
thing, thus  far  revealed  from  extinct  creations, 
have  led  us  to  anticipate  its  existence.  So 
true  is  it  that  observation  alone  is  a  safe  guide 
to  the  laws  of  development  of  organized  be- 
ings, and  that  we  must  be  on  our  guard  against 
all  those  systems  of  transformation  of  species 
so  lightly  invented  by  the  imagination." 

The  author  goes  on  to  state  that  the  discov- 
ery of  these  fossils  was  mainly  due  to  Hugh 
Miller,  and  that  his  own  work  had  been  con- 
fined to  the  identification  of  their  character 
and  the  determination  of  their  relations  to  the 
already  known  fossil  fishes.  This  work,  upon 
a  type  so  extraordinary,  implied,  however,  in- 
numerable and  reiterated  comparisons,  and  a 
minute  study  of  the  least  fragments  of  the  re- 
mains which  could  be  procured.  The  materials 
were  chiefly  obtained  in  Scotland ;  but  Sir 
Koderick  Murchison  also  contributed  his  own 


368  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

collection  from  the  Old  Red  of  Russia,  and 
various  other  specimens  from  the  same  local- 
ity. Not  only  on  account  of  their  peculiar 
structure  were  the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red  in- 
teresting to  Agassiz,  but  also  because,  with 
this  fauna,  the  vertebrate  type  took  its  place 
for  the  first  time  in  what  were  then  supposed 
to  be  the  most  ancient  fossiliferous  beds. 
When  Agassiz  first  began  his  researches  on 
fossil  fishes,  no  vertebrate  form  had  been  dis- 
covered below  the  coal.  The  occurrence  of 
fishes  in  the  Devonian  and  Silurian  beds 
threw  the  vertebrate  type  back,  as  he  believed, 
into  line  with  all  the  invertebrate  classes,  and 
seemed  to  him  to  show  that  the  four  great 
types  of  the  animal  kingdom,  Radiates,  Mol- 
lusks,  Articulates,  and  Vertebrates,  had  ap- 
peared together.1  "It  is  henceforth  demon- 
strated," says  Agassiz,  "that  the  fishes  were 
included  in  the  plan  of  the  first  organic  com- 
binations which  made  the  point  of  departure 
for  all  the  living  inhabitants  of  our  globe  in 
the  series  of  time." 

In  his  opinion  this  simultaneity  of  appear- 
ance, as  well  as  the  richness  and  variety  dis- 
played by  invertebrate  classes  from  the  begin- 

1  Introduction  to  the  Poissons  Fossiles  du  Vieux  Ores  Rouget 
p.  22. 


LIVING  AND  FOSSIL   FISHES.          369 

ning,  made  it l  "  impossible  to  refer  the  first 
inhabitants  of  the  earth  to  a  few  stocks,  sub- 
sequently differentiated  under  the  influence 
of  external  conditions  of  existence."  .  .  .  He 
adds  : 2  "  I  have  elsewhere  presented  my  views 
upon  the  development  through  which  the  suc- 
cessive creations  have  passed  during  the  his- 
tory of  our  planet.  But  what  I  wish  to  prove 
here,  by  a  careful  discussion  of  the  facts  re- 
ported in  the  following  pages,  is  the  truth  of 
the  law  now  so  clearly  demonstrated  in  the 
series  of  vertebrates,  that  the  successive  crea- 
tions have  undergone  phases  of  development 
analogous  to  those  of  the  embryo  in  its  growth 
and  similar  to  the  gradations  shown  by  the 
present  creation  in  the  ascending  series,  which 
it  presents  as  a  whole.  One  may  consider  it 
as  henceforth  proved  that  the  embryo  of  the 
fish  during  its  development,  the  class  of  fishes 
as  it  at  present  exists  in  its  numerous  families, 
and  the  type  of  fish  in  its  planetary  history, 
exhibit  analogous  phases  through  which  one 
may  follow  the  same  creative  thought  like  a 
guiding  thread  in  the  study  of  the  connection 

1  Introduction  to  the  Poissons  Fossiles  du  Vieux  Ores  Rouge, 
p.  21. 

2  Introduction  to  the  Poissons  Fossiles  du  Vieux  Gres  Rouge, 
p.  24. 

VOL  L  24 


370  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

between  organized  beings."  Following  this 
comparison  closely,  lie  shows  how  the  early 
embryonic  condition  of  the  present  fishes  is 
recalled  by  the  general  disposition  of  the  fins 
in  the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone,  and 
especially  by  the  caudal  fin,  making  the  un- 
evenly lobed  tail,  so  characteristic  of  these 
ancient  forms.  This  so  called  heterocercal 
tail  is  only  known  to  exist,  as  a  permanent 
adult  feature,  in  the  sturgeons  of  to-day.  The 
form  of  the  head  and  the  position  of  the 
mouth  and  eyes  in  the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red 
were  also  shown  to  be  analogous  with  embry- 
onic phases  of  our  present  fishes.  From  these 
analogies,  and  also  from  the  ascendency  of 
fishes  as  the  only  known  vertebrate,  and  there- 
fore as  the  highest  type  in  those  ancient  de- 
posits, Agassiz  considered  this  fauna  as  repre- 
senting "  the  embryonic  age  of  the  reign  of 
fishes ; "  and  he  sums  up  his  results  in  conclu- 
sion in  the  following  words  :  "  The  facts,  taken 
as  a  whole,  seem  to  me  to  show,  not  only  that 
the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red  constitute  an  inde- 
pendent fauna,  distinct  from  those  of  other 
deposits,  but  that  they  also  represent  in  their 
organization  the  most  remarkable  analogy  with 
the  first  phases  of  embryonic  development  in 
the  bony  fishes  of  our  epoch,  and  a  no  less 


VIEWS  OF  AGASSIZ  ON  EVOLUTION.     371 

marked  parallelism  with  the  lower  degrees  of 
certain  types  of  the  class  as  it  now  exists  on 
the  surface  of  the  earth." 

It  has  been  said  by  one  of  the  biographers 
of  Agassiz,1  in  reference  to  this  work  upon  the 
fishes  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  :  "  It  is  dif- 
ficult to  understand  why  the  results  of  these 
admirable  researches,  and  of  later  ones  made 
by  him,  did  not  in  themselves  lead  him  to  sup- 
port the  theory  of  transformation,  of  which 
they  seem  the  natural  consequence."  It  is 
true  that  except  for  the  frequent  allusion  to  a 
creative  thought  or  plan,  this  introduction  to 
the  Fishes  of  the  Old  Red  might  seem  to  be 
written  by  an  advocate  of  the  development 
theory  rather  than  by  its  most  determined 
opponent,  so  much  does  it  deal  with  laws  of 
the  organic  world,  now  used  in  support  of 
evolution.  These  comprehensive  laws,  an- 
nounced by  Agassiz  in  his  "  Poissons  Fos- 
siles,"  and  afterward  constantly  reiterated  by 
him,  have  indeed  been  adopted  by  the  writers 
on  evolution,  though  with  a  wholly  different 
interpretation.  No  one  saw  more  clearly  than 
Agassiz  the  relation  which  he  first  pointed 
out,  between  the  succession  of  animals  of  the 
same  type  in  time  and  the  phases  of  their  em- 

1  Louis  Agassiz :  Notice  biographique,  par  Ernest  Favre. 


372  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

bryonic  growth  to-day,  and  he  often  said,  in 
his  lectures,  "  the  history  of  the  individual  is 
the  history  of  the  type."  But  the  coincidence 
between  the  geological  succession,  the  embry- 
onic development,  the  zoological  gradation, 
and  the  geographical  distribution  of  animals 
in  the  past  and  the  present,  rested,  according 
to  his  belief,  upon  an  intellectual  coherence 
and  not  upon  a  material  connection.  So,  also, 
the  variability,  as  well  as  the  constancy,  of 
organized  beings,  at  once  so  plastic  and  so 
inflexible,  seemed  to  him  controlled  by  some- 
thing more  than  the  mechanism  of  self-adjust- 
ing forces.  In  this  conviction  he  remained 
unshaken  all  his  life,  although  the  develop- 
ment theory  came  up  for  discussion  under  so 
many  various  aspects  during  that  time.  His 
views  are  now  in  the  descending  scale  ;  but  to 
give  them  less  than  their  real  prominence  here 
would  be  to  deprive  his  scientific  career  of  its 
true  basis.  Belief  in  a  Creator  was  the  key- 
note of  his  study  of  nature. 

In  summing  up  the  comprehensive  results 
of  Agassiz's  paleontological  researches,  and 
especially  of  his  "  Fossil  Fishes/'  Arnold 
Guyot  says  : 1  — 

"  Whatever  be  the  opinions  which  many 

1  See  Biographical  Memoir  of  Louis  Agafsiz,  p.  28. 


AGASSI Z    ON  PALEONTOLOGY.         373 

may  entertain  as  to  the  interpretation  of  some 
of  these  generalizations,  the  vast  importance 
of  these  results  of  Agassiz's  studies  may  be 
appreciated  by  the  incontestable  fact,  that 
nearly  all  the  questions  which  modern  pale- 
ontology has  treated  are  here  raised  and  in 
great  measure  solved.  They  already  form  a 
code  of  general  laws  which  has  become  a 
foundation  for  the  geological  history  of  the 
life-system,  and  which  the  subsequent  investi- 
gations of  science  have  only  modified  and  ex- 
tended, not  destroyed.  Nowhere  did  the  mind 
of  Agassiz  show  more  power  of  generalization, 
more  vigor,  or  more  originality.  The  discov- 
ery of  these  great  truths  is  truly  his  work ; 
he  derived  them  immediately  from  nature  by 
his  own  observations.  Hence  it  is  that  all  his 
later  zoological  investigations  tend  to  a  com- 
mon aim,  namely,  to  give  by  farther  studies, 
equally  conscientious  but  more  extensive,  a 
broader  and  more  solid  basis  to  those  laws 
which  he  had  read  in  nature  and  which  he 
had  proclaimed  at  that  early  date  in  his  im- 
mortal work,  '  Poissons  Fossiles.'  Let  us  not 
be  astonished  that  he  should  have  remained 
faithful  to  these  views  to  the  end  of  his  life. 
It  is  because  he  had  seen  that  he  believed, 
and  such  a  faith  is  not  easily  shaken  by  new 
hypotheses." 


374  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO   SIB   PHILIP  EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL,  September  7,  1844. 
...  I  write  in  all  haste  to  ask  for  any  ad- 
dress to  which  I  can  safely  forward  my  report 
on  the  Sheppy  fishes,  so  that  they  may  arrive 
without  fail  in  time  for  the  meeting  at  York. 
Since  my  last  letter  I  have  made  progress  in 
this  kind  of  research.  I  have  sacrificed  all 
my  duplicates  of  our  present  fishes  to  furnish 
skeletons.  I  have  prepared  more  than  a  hun- 
dred since  I  last  wrote  you,  and  I  can  now 
determine  the  family,  and  even  the  genus,  sim- 
ply by  seeing  the  skull.  There  remains  noth- 
ing impossible  now  in  the  determination  of 
fishes,  and  if  I  can  obtain  certain  exotic  gen- 
era, which  I  have  not  as  yet,  I  can  make  an 
osteology  of  fishes  as  complete  as  that  which 
we  possess  for  the  other  classes  of  vertebrates. 
Every  family  has  its  special  type  of  skull. 
All  this  is  extremely  interesting.  I  have  al- 
ready corrected  a  mass  of  inaccurate  identifi- 
cations established  upon  external  characters ; 
and  as  for  fossils,  I  have  recognized  and  char- 
acterized seventeen  new  genera  among  the  less 
perfect  undetermined  specimens  you  have  sent 
me.  Several  families  appear  now  for  the  first 
time  among  the  fossils.  I  have  been  able  to 


FOSSIL  FISHES  OF  SHEPPY.  375 

determine  to  what  family  all  the  doubtful 
genera  belong ;  indeed  Sheppy  will  prove  as 
rich  in  species  as  Mont  Bolca.  When  you 
see  your  specimens  again  you  will  hardly 
recognize  them,  they  are  so  changed ;  I  have 
chiseled  and  cleaned  them,  until  they  are  al- 
most like  anatomical  preparations.  Try  to 
procure  as  many  more  specimens  as  possible 
and  send  them  to  me.  I  cannot  stir  from 
Neuchatel,  now  that  I  am  so  fully  in  the 
spirit  of  work,  and  besides  it  would  be  a  use- 
less expense.  .  .  .  You  will  receive  with  my 
report  the  three  numbers  which  complete  my 
monograph  of  the  Fishes  of  the  Old  Red.  I 
feel  sure,  in  advance,  that  you  will  be  satis- 
fied with  them.  .  .  . 

SIB  PHILIP   EGERTON   TO   LOUIS   AGASSIZ. 

TOLLY  HOUSE,  ALNESS,  ROSS-SHIRE.  ") 
September  15,  1844.  ) 

...  I  have  only  this  day  received  your 
letter  of  the  6th,  and  I  fear  much  you  will 
scarcely  receive  this  in  time  to  make  it  avail- 
able. I  shall  not  be  able  to  reach  York  for 
the  commencement  of  the  meeting,  but  hope 
to  be  there  on  Saturday,  September  28th.  A 
parcel  will  reach  me  in  the  shortest  possible 
time  addressed  Sir  P.  Egerton,  Donnington 


376  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

Kectory,  York.  I  am  delighted  with  the 
bright  results  of  your  comparison  of  the 
Sheppy  fossils  with  recent  forms.  You  ap- 
pear to  have  opened  out  an  entirely  new 
field  of  investigation,  likely  to  be  productive 
of  most  brilliant  results.  Should  any  acci- 
dent delay  the  arrival  of  your  monograph  for 
the  York  meeting,  I  shall  make  a  point  of 
communicating  to  our  scientific  friends  the 
contents  of  your  letter,  as  I  know  they  will 
rejoice  to  hear  of  the  progress  of  fossil  ich- 
thyology in  your  masterly  hands.  When 
next  you  come,  I  wish  you  could  spend  a  few 
days  here.  We  are  surrounded  on  all  sides 
by  the  debris  of  the  moraines  of  the  ancient 
glaciers  that  descended  the  flank  of  Ben 
Wyvis,  and  I  think  you  would  find  much  to 
interest  you  in  tracing  their  relations.  We 
have  also  the  Cromarty  Fish-beds  within  a 
few  miles,  and  many  other  objects  of  geolog- 
ical interest.  ...  I  shall  see  Lord  Enniskillen 
at  York,  and  will  tell  him  of  your  success.  We 
shall,  of  course,  procure  all  the  Sheppy  fish 
we  can  either  by  purchase  or  exchange.  .  .  . 

The  pressure  of  work  upon  his  various  pub- 
lications detained  Agassiz  at  home  during  the 
summer  of  1844.  For  the  first  tune  he  was 


RENEWED  PLANS  FOR  UNITED  STATES.  377 

unable  to  make  one  of  the  glacial  party  this 
year,  but  the  work  was  carried  on  uninterrupt- 
edly, and  the  results  reported  to  him.  Mean- 
time his  contemplated  journey  to  the  United 
States  flitted  constantly  before  him. 

AGASSIZ   TO   THE    PRINCE    OF   CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL,  November  19, 1844. 
.  .  .  Your  idea  of  an  illustrated  American 
ichthyology  is  admirable.  But  for  that  we 
ought  to  have  with  us  an  artist  clever  enough 
to  paint  fishes  rapidly  from  the  life.  Work 
but  half  done  is  no  longer  permissible  in 
our  days.  ...  In  this  matter  I  think  there 
is  a  justice  due  to  Rafinesque.  However 
poor  his  descriptions,  he  nevertheless  first  rec- 
ognized the  necessity  of  multiplying  genera 
in  ichthyology,  and  that  at  a  time  when  the 
thing  was  far  more  difficult  than  now.  Sev- 
eral of  his  genera  have  even  the  priority  over 
those  now  accepted,  and  I  think  in  the  United 
States  it  would  be  easier  than  elsewhere  to 
find  again  a  part  of  the  materials  on  which 
he  worked.  We  must  not  neglect  from  this 
time  forth  to  ask  Americans  to  put  us  in  the 
way  of  extending  this  work  throughout  North 
America.  If  you  accept  me  for  your  collabo- 
rator, I  will  at  once  do  all  that  I  can  on  my 


378  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

side  to  bring  together  notes  and  specimens. 
I  will  write  to  several  naturalists  in  the  United 
States,  and  tell  them  that  as  I  am  to  accom- 
pany you  on  your  voyage  I  should  be  glad  to 
know  in  advance  what  they  have  done  in  ich- 
thyology, so  that  we  may  be  the  better  pre- 
pared to  profit  by  our  short  sojourn  in  their 
country.  However,  I  will  do  nothing  before 
having  your  directions,  which,  for  the  sake  of 
the  matter  in  hand,  I  should  be  glad  to  re- 
ceive as  early  as  possible.  .  .  . 

The  next  letter  announces  a  new  aspect 
of  the  projected  journey.  In  explanation,  it 
should  be  said  that  finding  Agassiz  might 
be  prevented  by  his  poverty  from  going,  the 
prince  had  invited  him  to  be  his  guest  for  a 
summer  in  the  United  States. 

AGASSIZ   TO   THE   PRINCE   OF   CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL,  January  7, 1845. 
...  I  have  received  an  excellent  piece  of 
news  from  Humboldt,  which  I  hasten  to  share 
with  you.  I  venture  to  believe  that  it  will 
please  you  also.  ...  I  had  written  to  Hum- 
boldt of  our  plans,  and  of  your  kind  offer  to 
take  me  with  you  to  the  United  States,  tell- 
ing him  at  the  same  time  how  much  I  regret- 


CHANGE  OF  PLANS  FOR  UNITED  STATES.  379 

ted  that  I  should  be  unable  to  visit  the  regions 
which  attracted  me  the  most  from  a  geolog- 
ical point  of  view,  and  asking  him  if  it  would 
be  possible  to  interest  the  king  in  this  jour- 
ney and  obtain  means  from  his  majesty  for  a 
longer  stay  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic. 
I  have  just  received  a  delightful  and  most 
unexpected  reply.  The  king  will  grant  me 
15,000  francs  for  this  object,  so  that  I  shall, 
in  any  event,  be  able  to  make  the  journey. 
All  the  more  do  I  desire  to  make  it  in  your 
society,  and  I  think  by  combining  our  forces 
we  shall  obtain  more  important  results  ;  but  I 
am  glad  that  I  can  do  it  without  being  a  bur- 
den to  you.  Before  answering  Humboldt,  I 
am  anxious  to  know  whether  your  plans  are 
definitely  decided  upon  for  this  summer,  and 
whether  this  arrangement  suits  you.  .  .  . 

The  pleasant  plan  so  long  meditated  was 
not  to  be  fulfilled.  The  prince  was  obliged 
to  defer  the  journey  and  never  accomplished 
it.  This  was  a  great  disappointment  to  Agas- 
siz. 

"  Am  I  then  to  go  without  you,"  he  writes ; 
"  is  this  irrevocable  ?  If  I  were  to  defer  my 
departure  till  September  would  it  then  be  pos- 
sible for  you  to  leave  Rome  ?  It  would  be 


380  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

too  delightful  if  we  could  make  this  journey 
together.  I  wish  also,  before  starting,  to  re- 
view everything  that  has  been  done  of  late  in 
paleontology,  zoology,  and  comparative  anat- 
omy, that  I  may,  in  behalf  of  all  these  sciences, 
take  advantage  of  the  circumstances  in  which 
I  shall  be  placed.  .  .  .  Whatever  befalls  me, 
I  feel  that  I  shall  never  cease  to  consecrate 
my  whole  energy  to  the  study  of  nature ;  its 
all  powerful  charm  has  taken  such  possession 
of  me  that  I  shall  always  sacrifice  everything 
to  it ;  even  the  things  which  men  usually 
value  most." 

Agassiz  had  determined,  before  starting  on 
his  journey,  to  complete  all  his  unfinished 
works,  and  to  put  in  order  his  correspondence 
and  collections,  including1  the  vast  amount  of 

f  O 

specimens  sent  him  for  identification  or  for 
his  own  researches.  The  task  of  "  setting  his 
house  in  order  "  for  a  change  which,  perhaps, 
he  dimly  felt  to  be  more  momentous  than  it 
seemed,  proved  long  and  laborious.  From  all 
accounts,  he  performed  prodigies  of  work,  but 
the  winter  and  spring  passed,  and  the  summer 
of  1845  found  him  still  at  his  post. 

Humboldt  writes  him  not  without  anxiety 
lest  his  determination  to  complete  all  the  tasks 
he  had  undertaken,  including  the  Nomenclator, 


LETTER  FROM  HUMBOLDT.  381 

should  involve  him  in  endless  delays  and  per- 
plexities. 

HUMBOLDT    TO   AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN,  September  16,  1845. 

.  .  .  Your  Nomenclator  frightens  me  with 
its  double  entries.  The  Milky  Way  must  have 
crossed  your  path,  for  you  seem  to  be  dealing 
with  nebulae  which  you  are  trying  to  resolve 
into  stars.  For  pity's  sake  husband  your 
strength.  You  treat  this  journey  as  if  it 
were  for  life.  As  to  finishing,  —  alas !  my 
friend,  one  does  not  finish.  Considering  all 
that  you  have  in  your  well-furnished  brain 
beside  your  accumulated  papers,  half  the  con- 
tents of  which  you  do  not  yourself  know, 
your  expression  "  aufraumen,"  —  to  put  in 
final  order,  is  singularly  inappropriate.  There 
will  always  remain  some  burdensome  residue, 
—  last  things  not  yet  accounted  for.  I  beg 
you,  then,  not  to  abuse  your  strength.  Be 
content  to  finish  only  what  seems  to  you  near- 
est completion,  —  the  most  advanced  of  your 
work. 

Your  letter  reached  me,  unaccompanied, 
however,  by  the  books  it  announces.  They 
are  to  come,  no  doubt,  in  some  other  way. 
Spite  of  the  demands  made  upon  me  by  the 
continuation  of  my  "  Cosmos,"  I  shall  find 


382  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

time  to  read  and  profit  by  your  introduction  to 
the  Old  Red.  I  am  inclined  to  sing  hymns  of 
praise  to  the  Hyperboreans  who  have  helped 
you  in  this  admirable  work.  What  you  say 
of  the  specific  difference  in  vertical  line  and 
of  the  increased  number  of  biological  epochs 
is  full  of  interest  and  wisdom.  No  wonder 
you  rebel  against  the  idea  that  the  Baltic  con- 
tains microscopic  animals  identical  with  those 
of  the  chalk !  I  foresee,  however,  a  new  battle 
of  Waterloo  between  you  and  my  friend  Eh- 
renberg,  who  accompanied  me  lately,  just  after 
the  Victoria  festivals,  to  the  volcanoes  of  the 
Eifel  with  Dechen.  Not  an  inch  of  ground 
without  infusoria  in  those  regions  !  For  Heav- 
en's sake  do  not  meddle  with  the  infusoria 
before  you  have  seen  the  Canada  Lakes  and 
completed  your  journey.  Defer  them  till 
some  more  tranquil  period  of  your  life.  .  .  . 
I  must  close  my  letter  with  the  hope  that  you 
will  never  doubt  my  warm  affection.  Assur- 
edly I  shall  find  no  fault  with  any  course  of 
lectures  you  may  give  in  the  new  world,  nor 
do  I  see  the  least  objection  to  giving  them  for 
money.  You  can  thus  propagate  your  favor- 
ite views  and  spread  useful  knowledge,  while 
at  the  same  time  you  will,  by  most  honorable 
and  praiseworthy  means,  provide  additional 
funds  for  your  traveling  expenses.  .  .  . 


LETTER  FROM  PROFESSOR   SEDGWICK.     383 

The  following  correspondence  with  Profes- 
sor Adam  Sedgwick  is  of  interest,  as  showing 
his  attitude  and  that  of  Agassiz  toward  ques- 
tions which  have  since  acquired  a  still  greater 
scientific  importance. 

PROFESSOR  ADAM  SEDGWICK  TO  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

TRINITY  COLL.,  CAMBRIDGE,  > 
April  10,  1845.  > 

MY  DEAR  PROFESSOR,  —  The  British  Asso- 
ciation is  to  meet  here  about  the  middle  of 
June,  and  I  trust  that  the  occasion  will  again 
bring  you  to  England  and  give  me  the  great 
happiness  of  entertaining  you  in  Trinity  Col- 
lege. Indeed,  I  wish  very  much  to  see  you ; 
for  many  years  have  now  elapsed  since  I  last 
had  that  pleasure.  May  God  long  preserve 
your  life,  which  has  been  spent  in  promoting 
the  great  ends  of  truth  and  knowledge  !  Your 
great  work  on  fossil  fishes  is  now  before  me, 
and  I  also  possess  the  first  number  of  your 
monograph  upon  the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red 
Sandstone.  I  trust  the  new  numbers  will  fol- 
low the  first  in  rapid  succession.  I  love  now 
and  then  to  find  a  resting  -  place  ;  and  your 
works  always  give  me  one.  The  opinions  of 
Geoffroy  St.  Hilaire  and  his  dark  school  seem 
to  be  gaining  some  ground  in  England.  I 


384  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

detest  them,  because  I  think  them  untrue. 
They  shut  out  all  argument  from  design  and 
all  notion  of  a  Creative  Providence,  and  in  so 
doing  they  appear  to  me  to  deprive  physiology 
of  its  life  and  strength,  and  language  of  its 
beauty  and  meaning.  I  am  as  much  offended 
in  taste  by  the  turgid  mystical  bombast  of 
Geoffroy  as  I  am  disgusted  by  his  cold  and 
irrational  materialism.  When  men  of  his 
school  talk  of  the  elective  affinity  of  organic 
types,  I  hear  a  jargon  I  cannot  comprehend, 
and  I  turn  from  it  in  disgust ;  and  when  they 
talk  of  spontaneous  generation  and  transmuta- 
tion of  species,  they  seem  to  me  to  try  nature 
by  an  hypothesis,  and  not  to  try  their  hypoth- 
esis by  nature.  Where  are  their  facts  on 
which  to  form  an  inductive  truth  ?  I  deny 
their  starting  condition.  "  Oh  !  but "  they  re- 
ply, "  we  have  progressive  development  in  ge- 
ology." Now,  I  allow  (as  all  geologists  must 
do)  a  'kind  of  progressive  development.  For 
example,  the  first  fish  are  below  the  reptiles  ; 
and  the  first  reptiles  older  than  man.  I  say, 
we  have  -successive  forms  of  animal  life 
adapted  to  successive  conditions  (so  far,  prov- 
ing design),  and  not  derived  in  natural  suc- 
cession in  the  ordinary  way  of  generation. 
But  if  no  single  fact  in  actual  nature  allows 


LETTER   FROM  PROFESSOR   SEDGWICK.    385 

us  to  suppose  that  the  new  species  and  orders 
were  produced  successively  in  the  natural  way, 
how  did  they  begin  ?  I  reply,  by  a  way  out 
of  and  above  common  known,  material  nature, 
and  this  way  I  call  creation.  Generation  and 
creation  are  two  distinct  ideas,  and  must  be 
described  by  two  distinct  words,  unless  we 
wish  to  introduce  utter  confusion  of  thought 
and  language.  In  this  view  I  think  you  agree 
with  me ;  for  I  spoke  to  you  on  the  subject 
when  we  met  (alas,  ten  years  since !)  at  Dub- 
lin. Would  you  have  the  great  kindness  to 
give  me  your  most  valuable  opinion  on  one  or 
two  points  ? 

(1.)  Is  it  possible,  according  to  the  known 
laws  of  actual  nature,  or  is  it  probable,  on 
any  analogies  of  nature,  that  the  vast  series 
of  fish,  from  those  of  the  Ludlow  rock  and 
the  Old  Red  Sandstone  to  those  of  our  ac- 
tual seas,  lakes,  and  rivers,  are  derived  from 
one  common  original -low  type,  in  the  way  of 
development  and  by  propagation  or  natural 
breeding  ?  I  should  say,  no.  But  my  knowl- 
edge  is  feeble  and  at  second-hand.  Yours  is 
strong  and  from  the  fountain-head. 

(2.)  Is  the  organic  type  of  fish  higher  now 
than  it  was  during  the  carboniferous  period, 
when  the  Sauroids  so  much  abounded?  If 

VOL.   I.  25 


386  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

the  progressive  theory  of  Geoffroy  be  true,  in 
his  sense,  each  class  of  animals  ought  to  be 
progressive  in  its  organic  type.  It  appears  to 
me  that  this  is  not  true.  Pray  tell  me  your 
own  views  on  this  point. 

(3.)  There  are  "  odd  fish  "  (as  we  say  in 
jest)  in  the  Old  Red  Sandstone.  Do  these  so 
graduate  into  crustaceans  as  to  form  anything 
like  such  an  organic  link  that  one  could,  by 
generation,  come  naturally  from  the  other  ? 
I  should  say,  no,  being  instructed  by  your 
labors.  Again,  allowing  this,  for  the  sake  of 
argument,  are  there  not  much  higher  types  of 
fish  which  are  contemporaneous  with  the  lower 
types  (if,  indeed,  they  be  lower),  and  do  not 
these  nobler  fish  of  the  Old  Red  Sandstone 
stultify  the  hypothesis  of  natural  generative 
development  ? 

(4.)  Will  you  give  me,  in  a  few  general 
words,  your  views  of  the  scale  occupied  by 
the  fish  of  the  Old  Red,  considered  as  a  nat- 
ural group  ?  Are  they  so  rudimentary  as  to 
look  like  abortions  or  creatures  derived  from 
some  inferior  class,  which  have  not  yet  by  de- 
velopment reached  the  higher  type  of  fish  ? 
Again,  I  should  say,  no  ;  but  I  long  for  an 
answer  from  a  great  authority  like  yours.  I 
am  most  anxious  for  a  good  general  concep- 


LETTER    TO  PROFESSOR   SEDGWICK.      387 

tion  of  the  fish  of  the  Old  Red,  with  reference 
to  some  intelligible  scale. 

(5.)  Lastly,  is  there  the  shadow  of  ground 
for  supposing  that  by  any  natural  generative 
development  the  Ichthyosaurians  and  other 
kindred  forms  of  reptile  have  come  from  Sau- 
roid,  or  any  other  type  of  fish?  I  believe 
you  will  say,  no.  At  any  rate,  the  facts  of 
geology  lend  no  support  to  such  a  view,  for 
the  nobler  forms  of  Reptile  appear  in  strata 
below  those  in  which  the  Ichthyosaurians,  etc., 
are  first  seen.  But  I  must  not  trouble  you 
with  more  questions.  Professor  Whewell  is 
now  Master  of  Trinity  College.  We  shall  all 
rejoice  to  see  you. 

Ever,  my  dear  Professor,  your  most  faithful 
and  most  grateful  friend, 

A.  SEDGWICK. 

FROM   LOUIS   AGASSIZ   TO   A.   SEDGWICK. 

NEUCHATEL,  June,  1845. 

...  I  reproach  myself  for  not  acknowledg- 
ing at  once  your  most  interesting  letter  of 
April  10th.  But  you  will  easily  understand 
that  in  the  midst  of  the  rush  of  work  conse- 
quent upon  my  preparation  for  a  journey  of 
several  years'  duration  I  have  not  noticed  the 
flight  of  time  since  I  received  it,  until  to-day, 


388  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

when  the  sight  of  the  date  fills  me  with  con- 
fusion. And  yet,  for  years,  I  have  not  re- 
ceived a  letter  which  has  given  me  greater 
pleasure  or  moved  me  more  deeply.  I  have 
felt  in  it  and  have  received  from  it  that  vigor 
of  conviction  which  gives  to  all  you  say  or 
write  a  virile  energy,  captivating  alike  to  the 
listener  or  the  reader.  Like  you,  I  am  pained 
by  the  progress  of  certain  tendencies  in  the 
domain  of  the  natural  sciences ;  it  is  not  only 
the  arid  character  of  this  philosophy  of  nature 
(and  by  this  I  mean,  not  natural  philosophy, 
but  the  "  Natur-philosophie  "  of  the  Germans 
and  French)  which  alarms  me.  I  dread  quite 
as  much  the  exaggeration  of  religious  fanati- 
cism, borrowing  fragments  from  science,  im- 
perfectly or  not  at  all  understood,  and  then 
making  use  of  them  to  prescribe  to  scientific 
men  what  they  are  allowed  to  see  or  to  find 
in  Nature.  Between  these  two  extremes  it  is 
difficult  to  follow  a  safe  road.  The  reason 
is,  perhaps,  that  the  domain  of  facts  has  not 
yet  received  a  sufficiently  general  recognition, 
while  traditional  beliefs  still  have  too  much 
influence  upon  the  study  of  the  sciences. 

Wishing  to  review  such  ideas  as  I  had 
formed  upon  these  questions,  I  gave  a  public 
course  this  winter  upon  the  plan  of  creation 


PLAN  IN   THE  ANIMAL  KINGDOM.    389 

as  shown  in  the  development  of  the  animal 
kingdom.  I  wish  I  could  send  it  to  you,  for  I 
think  it  might  please  you.  Unhappily,  I  had 
no  time  to  write  it  out,  and  have  not  even 
an  outline  of  it.  But  I  intend  to  work  fur- 
ther upon  this  subject  and  make  a  book  upon 
it  one  of  these  days.  If  I  speak  of  it  to-day 
it  is  because  in  this  course  I  have  treated  all 
the  questions  upon  which  you  ask  my  opinion. 
Let  me  answer  them  here  after  a  somewhat 
aphoristic  fashion. 

I  find  it  impossible  to  attribute  the  biolog- 
ical phenomena,  which  have  been  and  still  are 
going  on  upon  the  surface  of  our  globe,  to  the 
simple  action  of  physical  forces.  I  believe 
they  are  due,  in  their  entirety,  as  well  as  in- 
dividually, to  the  direct  intervention  of  a  crea- 
tive power,  acting  freely  and  in  an  autonomic 
way.  ...  I  have  tried  to  make  this  intentional 
plan  in  the  organization  of  the  animal  king- 
dom evident,  by  showing  that  the  differences 
between  animals  do  not  constitute  a  material 
chain,  analogous  to  a  series  of  physical  phe- 
nomena, bound  together  by  the  same  law,  but 
present  themselves  rather  as  the  phases  of  a 
thought,  formulated  according  to  a  definite 
aim.  I  think  we  know  enough  of  compara- 
tive anatomy  to  abandon  forever  the  idea  of 


390  LOUIS  AGASSI Z. 

the  transformation  of  the  organs  of  one  type 
into  those  of  another.  The  metamorphoses  of 
certain  animals,  and  especially  of  insects,  so 
often  cited  in  support  of  this  idea,  prove,  by 
the  fixity  with  which  they  repeat  themselves 
in  innumerable  species,  exactly  the  contrary. 
In  the  persistency  of  these  metamorphoses, 
distinct  for  each  species  and  known  to  repeat 
themselves  annually  in  a  hundred  thousand 
species,  and  to  have  done  so  ever  since  the 
present  order  of  things  was  established  on  the 
earth,  have  we  not  the  most  direct  proof  that 
the  diversity  of  types  is  not  due  to  external 
natural  influences  ?  I  have  followed  this  idea 
in  all  the  types  of  the  animal  kingdom.  I 
have  also  tried  to  show  the  direct  intervention 
of  a  creative  power  in  the  geographical  dis- 
tribution of  organized  beings  on  the  surface 
of  the  globe  when  the  species  are  definitely 
circumscribed.  As  evidence  of  the  fixity  of 
generic  types  and  the  existence  of  a  higher 
and  free  causal  power,  I  have  made  use  of  a 
method  which  appears  to  me  new  as  a  process 
of  reasoning.  The  series  of  reptiles,  for  in- 
stance, in  the  family  of  lizards,  shows  apodal 
forms,  forms  with  rudimentary  feet,  then  with 
a  successively  larger  number  of  fingers  until 
we  reach,  by  seemingly  insensible  gradations, 


DISTINCT  SPECIES.  391 

the  genera  Anguis,  Ophisaurus,  and  Pseudo- 
pus,  the  Chamosauria,  Chirotes,  Bipes,  Sepo, 
Scincus,  and  at  last  the  true  lizards.  It  would 
seem  to  any  reasonable  man  that  these  types 
are  the  transformations  of  a  single  primitive 
type,  so  closely  do  the  modifications  approach 
each  other;  and  yet  I  now  reject  any  such 
supposition,  and  after  having  studied  the  facts 
most  thoroughly,  I  find  in  them  a  direct  proof 
of  the  creation  of  all  these  species.  It  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  the  genus  Anguis  be- 
longs to  Europe,  the  Ophisaurus  to  North 
America,  the  Pseudopus  to  Dalmatia  and  the 
Caspian  steppe,  the  Sepo  to  Italy,  etc.  Now, 
I  ask  how  portions  of  the  earth  so  absolutely 
distinct  could  have  combined  to  form  a  con- 
tinuous zoological  series,  now  so  strikingly  dis- 
tributed, and  whether  the  idea  of  this  develop- 
ment could  have  started  from  any  other  source 
than  a  creative  purpose  manifested  in  space  ? 
These  same  purposes,  this  same  constancy  in 
the  employment  of  means  toward  a  final  end, 
may  be  read  still  more  clearly  in  the  study  of 
the  fossils  of  the  different  creations.  The 
species  of  all  the  creations  are  materially  and 
genealogically  as  distinct  from  each  other  as 
those  of  the  different  points  on  the  surface  of 
the  globe.  I  have  compared  hundreds  of  spe- 


392  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

cies  reputed  identical  in  various  successive  de- 
posits,—  species  which  are  always  quoted  in 
favor  of  a  transition,  however  indirect,  from 
one  group  of  species  to  another,  —  and  I  have 
always  found  marked  specific  differences  be- 
tween them.  In  a  few  weeks  I  will  send  you 
a  paper  which  I  have  just  printed  on  this  sub- 
ject, where  it  seems  to  me  this  view  is  very 
satisfactorily  proved.  The  idea  of  a  procrea- 
tion of  new  species  by  preceding  ones  is  a  gra- 
tuitous supposition  opposed  to  all  sound  phys- 
iological notions.  And  yet  it  is  true  that, 
taken  as  a  whole,  there  is  a  gradation  in  the 
organized  beings  of  successive  geological  for- 
mations, and  that  the  end  and  aim  of  this 
development  is  the  appearance  of  man.  But 
this  serial  connection  of  all  successive  creat- 
ures is  not  material ;  taken  singly  these  groups 
of  species  show  no  relation  through  interme- 
diate forms  genetically  derived  one  from  the 
other.  The  connection  between  them  becomes 
evident  only  when  they  are  considered  as  a 
whole  emanating  from  a  creative  power,  the 
author  of  them  all.  To  your  special  questions 
I  may  now  very  briefly  reply. 

Have  fishes  descended  from  a  primitive 
type?  So  far  am  I  from  thinking  this  pos- 
sible, that  I  do  not  believe  there  is  a  single 


SUCCESSION  OF  FISHES.  393 

specimen  of  fossil  or  living  fish,  whether  ma- 
rine or  fresh-water,  that  has  not  been  created 
with  reference  to  a  special  intention  and  a 
definite  aim,  even  though  we  may  be  able  to 
detect  but  a  portion  of  these  numerous  rela- 
tions and  of  the  essential  purpose. 

Are  the  present  fishes  superior  to  the  older 
ones  ?  As  a  general  proposition,  I  would  say, 
no  ;  it  seems  to  me  even  that  the  fishes  which 
preceded  the  appearance  of  reptiles  in  the 
plan  of  creation  were  higher  in  certain  char- 
acters than  those  which  succeeded  them  ;  and 
it  is  a  strange  fact  that  these  ancient  fishes 
have  something  analogous  with  reptiles,  which 
had  not  then  made  their  appearance.  One 
would  say  that  they  already  existed  in  the 
creative  thought,  and  that  their  coming,  not 
far  removed,  was  actually  anticipated. 

Can  the  fishes  of  the  Old  Red  be  considered 
the  embryos  of  those  of  later  epochs?  Of 
course  they  are  the  first  types  of  the  verte- 
brate series,  including  the  most  ancient  of  the 
Silurian  system  ;  but  they  each  constitute  an 
independent  fauna,  as  numerous  in  the  places 
where  these  earlier  fishes  are  found,  as  the 
present  fishes  in  any  area  of  similar  extent 
on  our  sea-shore  to-day.  I  now  know  one 
hundred  and  four  species  of  fossil  fish  from 


394  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

the  Old  Red,  belonging  to  forty-four  genera, 
comprised  under  seven  families,  between  sev- 
eral of  which  there  is  but  little  analogy  as 
to  organization.  It  is  therefore  impossible  to 
look  upon  them  as  coming  from  one  primitive 
stock.  The  primitive  diversity  of  these  types 
is  quite  as  remarkable  as  that  of  those  be- 
longing to  later  epochs.  It  is  nevertheless 
true  that,  regarded  as  part  of  the  general 
plan  of  creation,  this  fauna  presents  itself  as 
an  inferior  type  of  the  vertebrate  series,  con- 
necting itself  directly  in  the  creative  thought 
with  the  realization  of  later  forms,  the  last  of 
which  (and  this  seems  to  me  to  have  been  the 
general  end  of  creation)  was  to  place  man  at 
the  head  of  organized  beings  as  the  key-stone 
and  term  of  the  whole  series,  the  final  point 
in  the  premeditated  intention  of  the  primitive 
plan  which  has  been  carried  out  progressively 
in  the  course  of  time.  I  would  even  say  that  I 
believe  the  creation  of  man  has  closed  creation 
on  this  earth,  and  I  draw  this  conclusion  from 
the  fact  that  the  human  genus  is  the  first 
cosmopolite  type  in  Nature.  One  may  even 
affirm  that  man  is  clearly  announced  in  the 
phases  of  organic  development  of  the  animal 
kingdom  as  the  final  term  of  this  series. 

Lastly :  Is  there  any  reason  to  believe  that 


POPULAR  LECTURES  IN  NEUCHATEL.     395 

the  Ichthyosaurians  are  descendants  of  the 
Sauroid  fishes  which  preceded  the  appearance 
of  these  reptiles?  Not  the  least.  I  should 
consider  any  naturalist  who  would  seriously 
present  the  question  in  this  light  as  incapable 
of  discussing  it  or  judging  it.  He  would  place 
himself  outside  of  the  facts  and  would  reason 
from  a  basis  of  his  own  creating.  .  .  . 

In  the  "  Revue  Suisse  "  of  .April,  1845, 
there  is  a  notice  of  the  course  of  lectures  to 
which  reference  is  made  in  the  above  letter. 

"  A  numerous  audience  assembled  on  the 
26th  of  March  for  the  opening  of  a  course  by 
Professor  Agassiz  on  the  'Plan  of  Creation.' 
It  is  with  an  ever  new  pleasure  that  our  pub- 
lic come  together  to  listen  to  this  savant,  still 
so  young  and  already  so  celebrated.  Not  con- 
tent with  pursuing  in  seclusion  his  laborious 
scientific  investigations,  he  makes  a  habit  of 
communicating,  almost  annually,  to  an  audi- 
ence less  restricted  than  that  of  the  Academy 
the  general  result  of  some  of  his  researches. 
All  the  qualities  to  which  Mr.  Agassiz  has 
accustomed  his  listeners  were  found  in  the 
opening  prelude  ;  the  fullness  and  freedom  of 
expression  which  give  to  his  lectures  the  char- 
acter of  a  scientific  causerie ;  the  dignified 


396  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

ease  of  bearing,  joined  with  the  simplicity  and 
candor  of  a  savant  who  teaches  neither  by 
aphorisms  nor  oracles,  but  who  frankly  admits 
the  public  to  the  results  of  his  researches ; 
the  power  of  generalization  always  based  upon 
a  patient  study  of  facts,  which  he  knows  how 
to  present  with  remarkable  clearness  in  a  lan- 
guage that  all  can  understand.  We  will  not 
follow  the  professor  in  tracing  the  outlines 
of  his  course.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  he  in- 
tends to  show  in  the  general  development  of 
the  animal  kingdom  the  existence  of  a  definite 
preconceived  plan,  successively  carried  out ;  in 
other  words,  the  manifestation  of  a  higher 
thought,  —  the  thought  of  God.  This  crea- 
tive thought  may  be  studied  under  three 
points  of  view :  as  shown  in  the  relations 
which,  spite  of  their  manifold  diversity,  con- 
nect all  the  species  now  living  on  the  surface 
of  the  globe ;  in  their  geographical  distribu- 
tion ;  and  in  the  succession  of  beings  from 
primitive  epochs  until  the  present  condition 
of  things." 

The  summer  of  .1845  was  the  last  which 
Agassiz  passed  at  home.  It  was  broken  by 
a  short  and  hurried  visit  to  the  glacier  of 
the  Aar,  respecting  which  no  details  have 
been  preserved.  He  did  not  then  know  that 


DEPARTURE  FROM  NEUCHATEL.   397 

he  was  taking  a  final  leave  of  his  cabin  among 
the  rocks  and  ice.  Affairs  connected  with  the 
welfare  of  the  institution  in  Neuchatel,  with 
which  he  had  been  so  long  connected,  still 
detained  him  for  a  part  of  the  winter,  and  he 
did  not  leave  for  Paris  until  the  first  week  in 
March,  1846.  His  wife  and  daughters  had 
already  preceded  him  to  Germany,  where  he 
was  to  join  them  again  on  his  way  to  Paris, 
and  where  they  were  to  pass  the  period  of  his 
absence,  under  the  care  of  his  brother-in-law, 
Mr.  Alexander  Braun,  then  living  at  Carls- 
ruhe.  His  son  was  to  remain  at  school  at 
Neuchatel. 

It  was  two  o'clock  at  night  when  he  left 
his  home  of  so  many  years.  There  had  been 
a  general  sadness  at  the  thought  of  his  depar- 
ture, and  every  testimony  of  affection  and 
respect  accompanied  him.  The  students  came 
in  procession  with  torchlights  to  give  him  a 
parting  serenade,  and  many  of  his  friends 
and  colleagues  were  also  present  to  bid  him 
farewell.  M.  Louis  Favre  says  in  his  Me- 
moir, "  Great  was  the  emotion  at  Neuchatel 
when  the  report  was  spread  abroad  that  Agas- 
siz  was  about  to  leave  for  a  long  journey.  It 
is  true  he  promised  to  come  back,  but  the  New 
World  might  shower  upon  him  such  marvels 


398  LOUIS  AGASSIZ. 

that  his  return  could  hardly  be  counted  upon. 
The  young  people,  the  students,  regretted 
their  beloved  professor  not  only  for  his  scien- 
tific attainments,  but  for  his  kindly  disposi- 
tion, the  charm  of  his  eloquence,  the  inspira- 
tion of  his  teaching ;  they  regretted  also  the 
gay,  animated,  untiring  companion  of  their 
excursions,  who  made  them  acquainted  with 
nature,  and  knew  so  well  how  to  encourage 
and  interest  them  in  their  studies." 

Pausing  at  Carlsruhe  on  his  journey,  he 
proceeded  thence  to  Paris,  where  he  was  wel- 
comed with  the  greatest  cordiality  by  scien- 
tific men.  In  recognition  of  his  work  on  the 
"  Fossil  Fishes  "  the  Monthyon  Prize  of  Phys- 
iology was  awarded  him  by  the  Academy. 
He  felt  this  distinction  the  more  because  the 
bearing  of  such  investigations  upon  experi- 
mental physiology  had  never  before  been 
pointed  out,  and  it  showed  that  he  had  suc- 
ceeded in  giving  a  new  direction  and  a  more 
comprehensive  character  to  paleontological 
research.  He  passed  some  months  in  Paris, 
busily  occupied  with  the  publication  of  the 
"  Systeme  Glaciaire,"  his  second  work  on  the 
glacial  phenomena.  The  "Etudes  sur  les 
Glaciers"  had  simply  contained  a  resume*  of 
all  the  researches  undertaken  upon  the  Al- 


SYSTEME   GLACIAIRE.  399 

pine  fields  of  ice  and  the  results  obtained  up 
to  1840,  inclusive  of  the  author's  own  work 
and  his  wider  interpretation  of  the  facts.  The 
"  Systeme  Glaciaire  "  was,  on  the  contrary,  an 
account  of  a  connected  plan  of  investigation 
during  a  succession  of  years,  upon  a  single 
glacier,  with  its  geodetic  and  topographic  fea- 
tures, its  hydrography,  its  internal  structure,  its 
atmospheric  conditions,  its  rate  of  annual  and 
diurnal  progress,  and  its  relations  to  surround- 
ing glaciers.  All  the  local  phenomena,  so  far 
as  they  could  be  observed,  were  subjected  to 
a  strict  scrutiny,  and  the  results  corrected  by 
careful  comparison,  during  five  seasons.  As 
we  have  seen,  and  as  Agassiz  himself  says  in 
his  Preface,  this  band  of  workers  had  "  lived 
in  the  intimacy  of  the  glacier,  striving  to  draw 
from  it  the  secret  of  its  formation  and  its  an- 
nual advance."  The  work  was  accompanied 
by  three  maps  and  nine  plates.  In  such  a 
volume  of  detail  there  is  no  room  for  pictur- 
esque description,  and  little  is  told  of  the 
wonderful  scenes  they  witnessed  by  day  and 
night,  nothing  of  personal  peril  and  adven- 
ture. 

This  task  concluded,  he  went  to  England, 
where  he  was  to  spend  the  few  remaining 
days  previous  to  his  departure.  Among  the 


400  LOUIS  AGASS1Z. 

last  words  of  farewell  which  reached  him 
just  as  he  was  leaving  the  Old  World,  little 
thinking  then  that  he  was  to  make  a  perma- 
nent home  in  America,  were  these  lines  from 
Humboldt,  written  at  Sans  Souci  :  "Be 
happy  in  this  new  undertaking,  and  preserve 
for  me  the  first  place  under  the  head  of 
friendship  in  your  heart.  When  you  return 
I  shall  be  here  no  more,  but  the  king  and 
queen  will  receive  you  on  this  '  historic  hill ' 
with  the  affection  which,  for  so  many  reasons, 
you  merit.  .  .  . 

"  Your  illegible  but  much  attached  friend, 

"  A.  HUMBOLDT." 

So  closed  this  period  of  Agassiz's  life. 
The  next  was  to  open  in  new  scenes,  under 
wholly  different  conditions.  He  sailed  for 
America  in  September,  1846. 


BOOKS  BY  LOUIS  AGASSIZ, 

Published  by 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND   COMPANY, 

4  PARK  STREET,  BOSTON; 
ii  EAST  I;TH  STREET,  NEW  YORK. 

METHODS  OF  STUDY  IN  NATURAL  HISTORY. 

By  Louis  AGASSIZ.     With  Illustrations. 
i6mo,  $1.50. 

CONTENTS: 

I.  General  Sketch  of  the  Early  Progress  in  Natural  History 
II.  Nomenclature  and  Classification. 

III.  Categories  of  Classification. 

IV.  Classification  and  Creation. 

V.  Different  Views  respecting  Orders. 
VI.  Gradation  among  Animals. 
VII.  Analogous  Types. 
VIII.  Family  Characteristics. 
IX.  The  Cnaracter  of  Genera. 
X.  Species  and  Breeds. 
XI.  Formation  of  Coral  Reefs. 
XII.  Age  of  Coral  Reefs  as  showing  Permanence  of  Species. 

XIII.  Homologies. 

XIV.  Alternate  Generations. 
XV.  The  Ovarian  Egg. 

XVI.  Embryology  and  Classification. 

Skillfully  planned,  and  tersely  written ;  and  while  embodying 
many  general  hints  as  to  the  method  by  which  scientific  truth  has 
been  reached,  it  sketches  the  history  of  science  in  past  times. 
The  knowledge  which  it  imparts  so  gracefully  is  of  the  most 
interesting  character,  and  is  enforced  by  apposite  and  practical 
illustration.  A  more  delightful  scientific  work  we  have  never 
chanced  to  encounter  ;  and  we  therefore  cordially  commend  it  to 
all  classes  of  readers.  —  New  York  Albion. 

Never  before  has  science  been  so  completely  popularized.  — 
Philadelphia,  Press. 


We  commend  them  as  giving  in  popular  form  the  general  out- 
line and  many  local  details  of  the  glacial  theory  which  Agassiz 
elaborated  to  cosmic  proportions  from  Charpentier's  more  limited 
groundwork,  and  for  which  he  labored  and  battled  against  potent 
adversaries  during  many  years,  until  from  a  hypothesis  he  reduced 
it  to  a  demonstration.  —  New  York  World. 

The  simple  grace  of  style,  the  pure  and  idiomatic  English,  itself 
a  model  for  the  student,  the  clearness  of  illustration,  the  certainty 
of  the  author's  grasp  of  his  subject,  give  them  a  wonderful  charm, 
even  to  those  who  neither  know  nor  care  for  their  subject.  Some 
men  can  make  any  subject  interesting  to  any  one.  Among  these 
Professor  Agassiz  was  prominent.  —  Portland  Press. 


A   JOURNEY    IN    BRAZIL 

,3y  Professor  and  Mrs.  Louis  AGASSIZ.  With  eight 
full-page  Illustrations  and  many  smaller  ones,  from 
photographs  and  sketches.  8vo,  $5.00. 

CONTENTS 

I.  Voyage  from  New  York  to  Rio  de  Janeiro. 
II.  Rio  de  Janeiro  and  its  Environs  —  Juiz  de  Fora. 

III.  Life  in  Rio  —  Fazenda  Life. 

IV.  Voyage  up  the  Coast  to  Para. 
V.  From  Para  to  Manaos. 

VI.  Life  at  Manaos  —  Voyage  from  Manaos  to  Tabatinga. 
VII.  Life  in  Tefee. 

VIII.  Return  to  Manaos  —  Amazonian  Picnic. 
IX.  Manaos  and  its  Neighborhood. 

X.  Excursion  to  Mauhes  and  its  Neighborhood. 
XI.  Return  to  Manaos  —  Excursion  on  the  Rio  Negro. 
XII.  Down  the  River  to  Para  —  Excursions  on  the  Coast. 

XIII.  Physical  History  of  the  Amazons. 

XIV.  Ceara. 

XV.  Public  Institutions  of  Rio  —  Organ  Mountains. 
XVI.  General  Impressions  of  Brazil. 
Appendix. 

The  volume  possesses  a  high  degree  of  interest  in  the  richness 
of  its  details  concerning  the  manners  and  customs,  social  life,  and 
natural  scenery,  of  Brazil,  its  animated  and  often  picturesque  nar- 
rative, and  the  graceful  freedom  and  simplicity  of  its  style.  —  New 
York  Tribune. 

The  narrative  is  interwoven  with  some  of  the  more  general  re- 
sults of  Prof.  Agassiz's  scientific  observations,  especially  his  in« 


quiries  into  the  distribution  of  the  fishes  in  the  greatest  hydro- 
graphic  basin  in  the  world,  and  the  proof  of  the  former  existence 
of  glaciers  throughout  its  extent.  The  vegetation  of  the  tropics, 
seen  by  Prof.  Agassiz  from  a  paleontological  point  of  view,  is 
drawn  in  charming  pictures  by  Mrs.  Agassiz's  pen-  —  Journal  of 
Travel  and  Natural  History  (London). 

A  most  charming  and  instructive  volume.  It  will  be  an  indis- 
pensable companion  for  every  traveller  in  Brazil ;  and  its  intrinsic 
merits  assure  for  it  general  favor  and  circulation.  —  Pall  Mall  Ga- 
zette. 

A  more  charming  volume  of  travels  we  have  seldom  met  with. 
—  Springfield  Republican. 

It  is  impossible  to  give  the  reader  an  idea  of  the  wealth  in  the 
volume.  —  Boston  Transcript. 


SEASIDE   STUDIES    IN    NATURAL   HISTORY, 

By  ELIZABETH  C.  AGASSIZ  and  ALEXANDER  AGASSIZ. 
With  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  Illustrations. 
8vo,  $3.00. 

This  beautiful  volume  is  an  admirable  companion  for  the  sea- 
side resident  or  tourist,  especially  for  all  who  are  capable  of  pleas- 
ure from  looking  at  or  studying  the  life  of  the  sea.  Professor 
Alexander  Agassiz  gives  the  results  of  his  own  extended  observa- 
tions and  profound  researches,  relating  to  the  structure,  habits, 
growth,  development  from  the  embryo,  and  other  characteristics 
of  New  England  polyps,  jelly-fishes  or  medusae,  and  star-fishes, 
illustrating  his  descriptions  with  numerous  artistic  figures  ;  and 
Mrs.  Agassiz  adds  to  the  volume  the  charm  of  her  graceful  pen. 
"  Seaside  Studies  in  Natural  History  "  is  a  work  for  the  learned 
as  well  as  unlearned,  fitted  to  give  all  delight  and  instruction.  — 
Professor  JAMES  D.  DANA,  in  American  Journal  of  Science. 


LOUIS   AGASSIZ: 
HIS   LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE. 

Edited  by  ELIZABETH  C.  AGASSIZ.    With  Portraits  and 
Illustrations.     2  vols.  crown  Svo.  $4.00. 

This  volume  gives  a  full  account  of  Professor  Agassiz,  his 
work  and  writings,  and  also  contains  copious  selections  from  his 
correspondence.  It  is  the  most  extended  biography  of  him  which 
has  ever  been  published. 


GEOLOGICAL  SKETCHES. 

By  Louis  AGASSIZ.     First  Series.     With  Illustrations. 
i6mo,  $1.50. 

CONTENTS: 

I.  America  the  Old  World. 
II.  The  Silurian  Beach. 

III.  The  Fern  Forests  of  the  Carboniferous  Period. 

IV.  Mountains  and  their  Origin. 
V.  The  Growth  of  Continents. 

VI.  The  Geological  Middle  Age. 

VII.  The  Tertiary  Age,  and  its  Characteristic  Animals. 
VIII.  The  Formation  of  Glaciers. 
IX.  Internal  Structure  and  Progression  of  Glaciers. 
X.  External  Appearance  of  Glaciers. 

This  work  has  been  extensively  read  and  admired  for  the  sim- 
plicity and  beauty  of  its  style,  the  vividness  of  its  descriptions  of 
Nature,  and  the  grandeur  of  its  views  of  the  -world's  progress. 
Professor  Agassiz  reviews  the  prominent  events  of  the  successive 
eras  in  a  manner  that  cannot  fail  to  charm  and  instruct  the  most 
unscientific  reader.  —  American  Journal  of  Science. 

The  style  of  these  essays  is  clear ;  the  information  such  as  to 
stimulate,  as  well  as  enlighten,  the  mind ;  and  the  illustrations 
serve  as  good  aids  to  the  thorough  comprehension  of  the  text.  — 
Boston  Transcript. 

GEOLOGICAL  SKETCHES. 
By  Louis  AGASSIZ.     Second  Series.     i6mo,  $1.50. 

CONTENTS: 
I.  Glacial  Period. 
II.  The  Parallel  Roads  of  Glen  Roy,  in  Scotland. 

III.  Ice-Period  in  America. 

IV.  Glacial  Phenomena  in  Maine. 

V.  Physical  History  of  the  Valley  of  the  Amazon. 

This  volume,  taken  in  connection  with  the  first  series  of  "  Geo- 
logical Sketches,"  presents  in  a  permanent  form,  and  in  their 
proper  order,  all  the  essays  Professor  Agassiz  wrote  in  his  ma- 
turer  years  on  geological  and  glacial  phenomena. 

These  papers,  rich  with  accumulated  stores  of  scientific  lore, 
and  seeming,  in  their  simple  but  animated  and  engaging  style,  to 
be  genuine  outgrowths  of  their  author's  temperament,  as  well  as 
of  his  wisdom,  need  no  recommendation.  — Boston  Advertiser. 


BIOLOGY  LIBRARY 

Califomi*  iKtttute  *f  Techndogy 


THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA,  SANTA  CRUZ 

SCIENCE  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  DATE  stamped  below. 

To  renew  by  phone,  call  459-2050. 

Books  not  returned  or  renewed  within  14  days 

after  due  date  are  subject  to  billing. 


MAY  3  1  19 


JUN16  1994  8 tU 


Scries  2477 


